War
by squeekness
Summary: At last the Game begins. Part 18 and conclusion to the Game.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: At last the Game begins. Part 18 of the Game.

Rated M for profanity, violence and some sexual content.

Disclaimer : I do not own the X-men or any of their associated villains, but the Siskans, the Dognan, Jael and the Outkasts are mine. Please do not use them without my permission. Thanks. :)

Notes :Art has been posted for The Calm Before the Storm on my website if anyone cares to look at it.

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(One)

_I have heard many people say how they respect and are even sometimes jealous of those who have been presented with great opportunities and had the courage to take them. They accepted their destinies and fulfilled them with grace and courage. There is this idea that those great heroes were fearless and brave and strong and awesome._

_I know better. They were pissing themselves with fear._

_I'm here, dreaming again, but my sense of tranquility has long since faded. I know this will be the last dream I will have of this war, the final test._

_I sit here in this guard shack, not on my feet just yet. I'm quietly refusing to co-operate just for one moment and so far the Spirits don't seem to mind. Perhaps they have granted me this one moment in time to reflect._

_I sit, my hand held out in front of me, a large silver braided ring in the center of it, a silent promise. If I do this one thing — whatever it is the Spirits want of me – I can have this. I can have my Kimble free and clear, mine for all time. All I have to do is figure out what that one thing is._

_I have watched my dreams as carefully as I can, tried to pluck secrets and clues from the scenes I've been shown. So many players here – my precious Remy, the gruff Wolverine, **Chuckfet** yet brave to their cores. Asher working his magic on the crowd. Zander so magnificent, all powerful rippling muscle and power. Mishnar with his strange lions. _

_And me._

_I close my hand around the ring, feel the comforting weight of it. It is silver platinum of the finest quality, never to rust or break apart. A thing as solid as my love for Kimble will ever be. And sadly, as real as precognition, my curse. One has made the other possible and I must be faithful to both._

_I hear a noisy crash of the door below me from outside my window and know that I must get with the program. I will rise and learn that which I must do. I will follow through and receive my reward or die in the ashes of this pathetic war. Asher claims that when someone dies in the act of saving another, they go to heaven in a state of perfect grace and will be redeemed against their sins. Well, if that is true, saving the life of my Lover and his child will serve me well. I am like those heroes, you see. I am brave enough, I have the will._

_Just watch and you'll see._

--------------------------------------

Aiden bolted upright in bed, waking from a yet another excursion into dreamland as he screamed, "E'sz 'ere! Jael 'asz come!"

The words had been out of his mouth before he could stop them. They had not been part of his current dream, but they were part of his fate, their interruption into his real life a clear indication of that. His shout had alerted Kimble, who jerked suddenly awake beside him with a startled grunt.

Not a second later, the compound alarm went off, a horrible shrieking sound. They had both heard this before and knew what it was. All their hopes of never hearing it again were now suddenly dashed.

The Siskans scrambled to their feet in a bewildered daze. Kimble and Aiden had both been out cold after a nice hard round of play that had left them wonderfully sated and sleepy. They had been solidly asleep in a pleasing afternoon nap that was now so rudely interrupted. They stood still for a moment, waiting for the all clear bell to sound, hoping that this was just a drill. It didn't take long to see that wasn't going to happen, that whatever this was, it was for real.

Aiden turned his head sharply when he saw Kimble suddenly shiver with a soft whimper of surprised surrender, an odd sound. The pilot's face smoothed out and Aiden was looking into the eyes of a stranger.

Aiden couldn't help but shiver himself at Remy's warning to him -- _You ain't felt nuthin' 'til 'e look right at you and it's someone else gleamin' in 'is eyes, tellin' you to go take a flyin' leap. _Well, here it was, that frightening duality. Of seeing Kimble but knowing it was someone else at the helm. So much for Asher's attempt at repair.

Aiden was frozen as Zander looked at him, tall and straight, not an ounce of fear. The Punisher's voice was low and gravelly, deep and commanding. "Stay here, Kimble's Aiden. Stay outta trouble. I'll takes care of this."

Aiden balked, fearful of what he knew Zander could do. For all he'd known about Kimble's violent Punisher, they had never met face to face. The body was the same, but Zander's shine and vibrations were that of an entirely different person. It was hard now for Aiden to see him, this part of his nightmares coming true right before his eyes. Aiden replied sadly, " 'Ow'sz zat, eh? What will be will be."

Zander just grinned a wicked smile. He flicked his wrist and just like that, conjured his sword. "Not this time. This time Jael pays. He pays fer all of it!"

Aiden stepped back nervously, holding up a hand for patience. "Don' be szo 'aszty. We all 'ave rolesz to play."

Their conversation was interrupted as Asher shambled down the hall, drowsy himself. He poked his head in their room, adjusting his not so sleepy Mumbler in his hands, Smee was wriggling and trying to go up onto his shoulder and around his neck. Asher startled noticeably and stopped fumbling with his agitated pet when he saw the change in Kimble. "What's goin' on? Who's this I'm lookin' at?"

"Disz isz Zandair, Ashair. I told you of him."

"Sharpsy sharp it 'tis!" Smee mumbled, still squirming. He didn't like the look of Zander's sword any more than Asher did. "Ouchy ouches!"

The centaur was shaking his head as he moved Smee up around his neck, a much safer position for the tiny animal. "Puts that sword down, kitten. There ain't no profit in fightin', only death."

Zander just laughed, a most unpleasant sound. "Just try and takes it, pretty boy."

Asher scowled at first in response, but then took a breath and calmed. His hands began to glow, wisping Morrowhiem. He was used to being in charge and wasn't going to let an unbalanced Siskan push him around, not without a fight. "He who lives by the sword, dies by that sword. What needs ta be done here ain't gonna be accomplished by that weapon, only be made ten times worse. Lays it down, Zander. Ya don't needs it. What happens today will happens by God's will, not yer own."

He didn't get an answer to that, at least not from his brothers. The front door suddenly burst open and Remy was there, breathless and flushed. He was dressed in full black, the first time they'd seen this uniform in the real world. As if confirming Aiden's worst fears, this was the new battle uniform from his prophetic dreams, another sign that this was finally the end of all things.

As he held his bo staff nervously in one hand, Remy's shine was shimmering brightly with fear and anticipation, but he was doing his best to control his anxiety in front of the women. He had Angel and Molly with him and he gently shoved them towards the centaur who was still in the hallway. Remy was spouting orders -- "Dat's de upstairs alarm. Molly's gonna escort you guys down a couple of levels to de evacuation area where dey keepin' all de kids. Fallen an' Set' already dere by now. Pack up a bag real quick and den you guys move, comprenez?"

"Goey goes to the safer places, yes!" Smee squeaked in agreement. He was still wriggling even though he'd been moved to the position he'd wanted in the first place, digging in a bit with his nails.

"Shure," Asher stammered lamely, still out of sorts from all the noise and confusion. He moved Smee from his neck back into his arms, protectively wanting a better grasp on him. He nodded at Remy. "Whatever you says I'll sees it done."

"Bien. Dere's two guys 'ere watchin' yo' door while you pack up. Don' be takin' too long, eh? You gotta move."

At Gambit's words, Zander had come forward, but Aiden used his position in the bedroom doorway to shield him from view, not wanting Remy to worry. Aiden looked out at the thief, "Disz isz it, right? Jael 'asz come."

Remy's crimson eyes smiled at him as he tried to put on his best face. "Don' you worry none. We gonna take care of dis, just like I promised. What y'all gotta do is go where Molly take you. Dat's how you gonna help. _**De only way**_. Now, where's Kimble at?"

" 'E'sz 'ere wit me. 'E shakin', but 'e fine. Do not worry. 'E'll be juszt fine. Me an' Ashair gonna keep an eye on 'im, neh?"

Remy paused, reaching out briefly with his empathy, just enough to sense Kimble was in fact there. It wasn't long enough for him to see that it was Zander in his place, the X-man was understandably distracted and had no time. He had to go and now. "Bien. Cause I can't be worryin' about all of you."

Remy looked at his wife. She was wearing a backpack, loaded with their own few necessities, but he next gave her a small metal box. "In case of an evacuation, dis will deactivate de trackers de Siskans 'ad to swallow. Don' use it 'less you guys gotta bail, comprenez? We gotta know where dese guys are all de time, especially today. You gotta go, you 'ead for de Dragons, Fallen will get you out."

**_Yes._** **_I love you._**

"Je t'aime, chere. Toujours." He gave Molly a deep kiss, bobbed his head at Angel and ducked out into the corridor, moving along into the crowd. Just like that, he was gone.

Asher looked at the closed door and at the two female humans trembling there. They were just as upset and disrupted as everyone else and frightened. Between having to deal with Zander and their terror, Asher was at a bit of a loss of what to do here himself.

Aiden wasn't. He had already turned to Zander, whispering in Siskan, **_"Get dresszed. Anjel isz outszide."_**

Zander started to argue, but he saw that Aiden wasn't fighting him, only taking charge. The Dreamer knew what had to happen here, he knew best of all. Zander dissolved the sword and grabbed at his pants, dressing quickly.

"**_What are y'all doin', Dreamer?"_** Asher hissed suspiciously, seeing that Aiden was up to something. He had to act, the humans would just have to wait.

"**_You believe in disz God of yoursz? Zen 'E ze one szendin' me dreamsz. Let me do 'Isz will zen,"_** Aiden snapped and brushed past him. The Dreamer came into the livingroom where Molly was standing, Angel in her arms. "Who isz outszide, pleasze?" he asked Molly, trying to make the question seem casual.

**_Ben and Thomas,_** she signed in confusion. She could sense something was up with these guys as well, they were hiding their words in Siskan and everything was just happening too quickly. They certainly weren't packing up anything as they had been told. She herself was a mess, it was clear she had been crying and was terrified, but she was waiting, waiting for Aiden to do what he had been told.

Aiden had no such plans. He nodded to himself, assessing the situation quickly. The two men were betas, cosmetic mutants only. The tough guys were all upstairs joining the fight.

With one fluid movement, Aiden reacted. He turned quickly, reaching out suddenly to lay a hand on Molly's head, sending out a strong surge of Morrowhiem, one she could never fight. **Sleep,** was the command. Unsuspecting, she fell quickly, dropping the tracker box, but Aiden caught her, careful to lay her down gently on the sofa. He wouldn't see her harmed.

"Aiden!" Asher shouted, coming forward in alarm. He accepted the fact that Aiden knew things he had not yet revealed, but these actions were violent and inexcusable. This couldn't be happening.

Asher didn't get more than one step before he was violently shoved back to the wall by Zander. The Punisher had dressed and was done waiting. He wanted no more interruptions and the centaur was in the way. Zander was powerful and wicked in his own way, Asher was no match for Zander, not when the Punisher was in full control of his powers like this. Certainly not when he wasn't prepared for it.

Smee spilled from Asher's arms to the floor from Zander's powerful thrust and instantly began to complain. "Meany mean the brighty white!" he garbled in his tiny little voice and nipped at Zander's furry toes in defense of his Master. Zander just gave him a swift kick to the left, tumbling the ferret-like creature into the corner. Smee was uninjured but stayed where he was, bristling with diminutive fury.

"Hey!" Asher snarled in indignation. He was struggling against Zander once more, the panic in him already rising. He didn't know which was worse, Zander playing so rough with his angel or Aiden moving the humans around like pawns. "What're you guys doin'?!"

"Stay back!" Zander warned the centaur with another decisive shove, answering in Aiden's place. He looked at Asher square and ordered, "Takes care of Kimble's Angel. That's all ya gots ta worry about. Don't lets her outta yer sight, understand?"

Asher wouldn't look at him, he refused to acknowledge this was really happening. His hands glowed with renewed Morrowhiem and he shoved them at Zander defensively, hoping to bring the Punisher down with an unexpected treatment of his power. Zander just laughed, absorbing Asher's Morrowhiem with a shiver and a flush of red in his shine that only spelled disaster. He'd been aroused by the rush, but coupled with his violent mind, didn't have tender lovemaking on his mind. He was looking on Asher now with an ugly gleam of lust and violent intention.

"Zandair, come!" Aiden barked sharply with all the authority of a Master. He needed the Punisher's anger, couldn't wait to see it inflicted on Jael, but still had to maintain some kind of control of the situation here and now. He only hoped Zander would co-operate. "We 'ave no time! Come!"

Asher meanwhile had cringed back, horrified by the unexpected reaction to his power. He had no idea if he could be sexually forced but didn't doubt Zander's capacity to at least punish him for the interruption. He found himself pleading with the pilot, "Don't do this! You cain't wins by fightin'!"

Zander's reply was another forceful shove, pushing Asher back and away down the hall towards the bedrooms. Zander was obeying Aiden though, and withdrew, bringing his violent, lustful vibrations with him. He would use them in battle, not against his clutchmate.

Asher was relieved by Zander's retreat and did not resist any further, but he was being forced to accept the inevitable. Aiden had told him some of what he had dreamed so none of this was any real surprise. He scooped up his poor rumpled Mumbler and cradled him, needing the comfort of it. Smee curled up against him, shaking with rage at his mistreatment but wanting his Master as well. He wasn't squirming nearly so much now.

Aiden meanwhile had opened the front door and greeted the door guards, they had knocked on the door, questioning all the racket. They came in and Aiden overpowered them quickly with a startling brutality, moving with emotionless calm and efficiency. The guards hadn't expected trouble from within and the element of surprise was all Aiden's. They were both stunned with heavy blows to the head and laid down gently on the floor. Zander came quickly, creating surprisingly realistic replicas of handcuffs from the same substance as his sword to tie their hands, there was no way they would be able to break free.

Angel was crying, upset by all she was seeing. It was all happening around her so quickly that she couldn't comprehend it. Why was Molly on the couch asleep and why did daddy look so strange? This wasn't the gentle Kimble she knew. "Daddy, what's going on?"

Zander bent and looked at her, fixing her with his eyes. The change in his voice and his posture was enough for her to know Kimble was no longer there. He didn't even try to deceive her. "Yer daddy's not here right now. I'm Zander an' I swores ta protects ya an' that's just what I'm gonner do. Now, to do that, I gots ta helps out outside. Me an' Aiden both. They wuzn't gonna lets us but we gots to, that's just how it is. They needs us, they just don't knows it, is all."

She sobbed harder at the change in his voice, she knew who this was. "Let me help my daddy!"

"You kin helps yer Kimble by stayin' here where it's safe."

"Is he coming back?"

"Of course, darlin'. Takes care of Asher fer me, he's gonna bring ya down to where Seth is, he'll watch over you."

Angel sobbed, seeing the lie in Zander's words, the uncertainly he felt. He couldn't possibly know the outcome of his actions, but she sensed enough of his obligation, of his desire to protect her that she could let him go, understanding that he was doing this for her.

Aiden watched this exchange with mixed feelings. It would be very simple now to pick up Angel and run, to just take her away and hide now that he knew she was the one he had to save. Yet he couldn't deny the overpowering feeling that to do so would be a terrible mistake. He had always been shown snippets of things, most often taken out of context. He might know the ending of something, but not how he got there when the getting there was sometimes the most important thing after all. The dreams had been very clear – he had to be outside and in that guard shack. Whatever he was supposed to do, it was to happen up there, not down here. If he tried to alter that history in any way it could have disastrous consequences and unlike his dreams, there would be no second changes to do it all again and get it right.

His decision made, Aiden started for the door, but Zander grabbed his shoulder. "Wait. We gots them trackers inside 'a us, we'll set off the alarms. They gots ta be deactivated."

Aiden nodded and grabbed the controller box from where Molly had dropped it. He began to work the buttons, deactivating their trackers against the door alarms. They would be free to move about now without alerting anyone to where they were going, or getting zapped by going out of bounds.

Asher trembled as he watched all this, one hand still grasping the cross around his neck, the other his angel as tears poured down his cheeks. There had to be some other way, God must give him a sign.

It didn't come. All he saw was the mad, deranged anger in the Punisher's eyes as the pilot turned to look at him, daring him to try to stop them again. Zander and Aiden were at the door, ready now to leave and do whatever it was they had planned. Zander growled at him, "You watch over the girls, we gots ta go now."

"Y'all gotta swears ta God ya won't kills nobody! Don' risk yer souls!" Asher begged, his misery the brightest thing in the room.

Zander's smile grew wicked, his eyes blazing with cruelty. "Not a chance. There ain't no God. If there wuz, he wouldn't've allowed all this shit ta happen. Maybe yer God'll come an saves ya just ta proves me wrong, but I'm bettin' He won't."

Asher looked at Zander's accomplice, pleading with his eyes. "Don' do this, Dreamer. Please!"

"It isz asz I dreamed it. Szo it muszt be ze will of your God," Aiden replied, throwing this back at his friend. "Don' worry, eh? It'll be over szoon. Goodbye, my friend."

------------------------

Aiden and Kimble slipped out into the hallway, closing the door behind them. "We cain't goes tagether, we gots ta break up, make it up to the surface on our own," Zander said, eyeing the upstairs door to his right.

Aiden nodded. It wasn't that he was agreeing so much as it was that he'd seen all this already. He knew which way he was supposed to go. His path would take him another direction. He reached for Zander's hand and found it, meeting the Punisher's eyes. "You watch my Keemble, eh? I want 'im back in one piecze. Don' do anyt'ing sztupid."

Zander growled rough laughter. "I'll keeps yer Lover safe, boy. Don't you worry none about that." He dragged Aiden close with a dangerous toothy smile, yanking him by his shirt and hauling him up for a deep bruising kiss. "Later, Dreamer."

Aiden gasped from the kiss. The red from Asher's treatment still blazed there in Zander's shine and for a moment he tasted Zander's powerful lust. Aiden had only a moment to wonder what it would be like to be taken by this creature, but then felt a surge of fear as he had an idea it would be something he probably wouldn't enjoy. Aiden wasn't one for rough handling. Zander released him with a dry chuckle and was gone just like that.

Aiden fell against the wall, gasping from the overpowering presence that Zander had been. All those times Kimble had lain asleep next to him, the Lover hiding such a savage power deeply within. It was like Kimble had been a stranger all along and they had never really known one another. He closed his eyes and sobbed once, momentarily overcome with the tension of all this. He was poised to lose so much, it had only been ten minutes since he had awakened from his nap, time was flying by in a blur.

Well, he had better not waste any more of it. He wiped at his face and got moving. He headed for stairwell at the opposite end of the hall and around the bend. He knew it would end up being the same stairwell as if he had come up from the Lab, just as in his dreams. He took the stairs quickly, rushing. He knew he would be coming out closer to the upper Complex and that he would have to travel across the tarmac. He had very little time.

Just as he expected, he came up under a guard shack almost at the building's edge. He kept his head down low, taking his time. From here he could see the distant line of the gathered X-men. The alarms had sent most of them to the tarmac where they had drilled endlessly for months now. They had grouped mainly on the north side, the direction the perimeter alarms had indicated Jael was approaching from. Also as expected, he saw the row of parked planes and three guards shacks in a neat line, heading out in the same direction. Somehow he had to get to the furthest one without being detected.

He kept low, running in as much of a crouch as he could manage. He made it to the first shack before it occurred to him he might want to remove his brightly colored shirt before he attracted too much attention to himself. Where he usually liked to be in the spotlight, this time wasn't one of them. He tore it from his body, leaving it behind inside the first shack before he scrambled to the next one. He was amazed that he hadn't been spotted, but then, all the attention was directed in front and he was creeping up from behind.

The next shack was going to be more difficult. There were some changes from his dreams, the X-men team was already assembled instead of him coming out here first. He could see the backs of both Remy and Logan leaning against the window on the back side of the shack. Good thing the door was on his side and already open. He bolted for it, making it inside without a sound, and under the desk he went.

Right on cue, the phone rang.

Remy's head turned at the sound of it. "We goan' get dat?"

Logan snorted, "Please. It's just the auto check in. Leave it."

" 'Kay."

Aiden heaved a silent sigh of relief and relaxed into the wall. These were small clues from his dreams, things were falling into place, but it was still all happening too quickly. He was drenched in gel sweat, as much from the heat as from being so terribly afraid. The heat was different here in this all too real life scenario. In his dreams it had been a dry desert heat, today it was humid and oppressive. There were clouds in the sky, something Aiden had never seen in all the times he'd been brought up to sun. Another sign that this was no ordinary day. He could only guess at what else might have been changed by the chaotic currents of fate. Good thing he was fairly adaptable, he had an idea he would need every ounce of his courage and cleverness today.

Soft knuckles rapped against the window glass, prompting Aiden to look up. Gambit had stretched, bracing his bo staff across his shoulders, his hands touching the glass.**_ / What you doin' 'ere, Aiden? You suppose' to be watchin' m' girls./_**

Aiden shivered, horrified that he'd been detected so easily. Swallowing his panic, he replied as honestly as he could, demanding understanding with every part of him. **_/ I 'ave to be 'ere. Disz suppoze t 'appen. Pleasze! Do you undersztand?_**

A vibration of impatience.**_ / Who's wit m' girls if you 'ere?_**

**_/ Keemble and Ashair,_** Aiden replied, praying the thief would accept the lie. Lord, he was so afraid.

**_/ Don' be scared. Gambit's got watch, _**the thief sent in a vibration of reassurance, shifting just slightly to cover more of the glass and protect him from view, just as in the dream.**_ / Just keep yo' 'ead down, d'accorde?_**

Just that simple thing brought out such a surge of love from the cowering, terrified Siskan that Remy was forced to smile and laugh softly at the measure of it.

"What?" Logan asked, turning his head.

"Rien. Just ready to get dis over wit."

"Remember, no heroics, Cajun. You and Jason here cover the stairwell. No one gets down. That's it. Yer too busted up to do more, got that?"

"Absolument, patron. Don't worry."

Remy shifted again as there was a low rumble of thunder in the distance. " 'M Stormy's a bit upset."

Logan grunted at the mention of the team's resident weather witch, Storm. She and Remy were longtime friends, she had been the one to bring Gambit onto the team all those years ago. The weather often reflected her mood. The day's brewing storm was a sign of her agitation and he hoped it would grow no worse. There was nothing more irritating than trying to fight in the rain. "The sooner this is done, the better off we'll all be."

There was a cry and all heads snapped forward. Jael had been sighted.


	2. Chapter 2

(Two)

It had been a strange day for Jael. He hadn't exactly planned to come after Xavier this day, but all of that had been taken out of his hands. The morning had started reasonably enough. He was lying in his huge stateroom on the Cloud Jumper, watching his television news coverage. There was plenty to see, but it was starting to get to the point where the stations kept replaying the same footage over and over again. He enjoyed watching as the Kremlin exploded time and time again on the replay, and seeing all the little Russian peons fleeing for their lives. There was also the live coverage which showed a constant smoking hole where the building had once been. Of course that wasn't nearly as exciting as all of the explosions. Jael was getting bored.

The television wasn't the only thing boring him. Star was standing at the large glass window, staring out at the horizon, her shoulders slumped with some pathetic sadness he cared nothing about. She was doing this more and more lately, but he figured with nothing else to do but serve him, she might be getting a little bored herself. Jael liked that she was his personal renewal system, but she was getting to be a little dull in the sack. He had always been a restless man, requiring a revolving door on his various harems. Star had been his steady girl for a while now and as pretty and talented as she was, the "little man" was grumbling for a change of pace.

Jael was also quite aggravated that Star had been able to do absolutely nothing with Simone. For all of her cajoling and pleading, the strange black Siskan wanted nothing to do with her or anyone else except Steve, the one who fed him. Of course once he was sated, Steve could go take a flying leap for all that Simone cared. So much for his special prize, Jael was bitterly disappointed. He'd been hoping to add Simone to his army of Siskans.

Jael hadn't been so stupid as to kill off all of his Siskans, only the useless ones. He had Four Channelers now, real ones and not fake as Kimble had been. He also had three Receivers. Receivers were highly prized, they could absorb substantial amounts of energy without harm and they were Jael's best defense in a mutant conflict like the one he faced in attacking Xavier's crew. They could make the difference between Jael being crisp fried by an energy producer or winning this thing. Jael had been excited at first by his acquisition of Simone. As a Rogue, the guy must certainly serve some great purpose, Jael had assumed. Or maybe not. Star certainly hadn't been able to do a thing with him, the useless cunt.

Jael sighed. For the first time, thoughts of disposing of Star crossed his mind.

Star was more than aware of it. She shivered in front of her big window, closing her eyes. Yeah, like she wouldn't be able to sense the emotions and vibrations of her disgruntled Master. She had failed miserably with Simone and her loathing of Jael was affecting her performance. It was becoming harder and harder to please the man, she hated him down to her very core but was still trying to obey him and her programming. It was just a matter of time before she was gone, sweet peace coming in the form of death.

_So be it,_ she thought to herself, no longer afraid.

_Quitter,_ Luma chided, a real threat in her voice._Opportunity's knockin'. Best be payin' attention._

_What?_ Star asked in confusion, but then her eyes widened in surprise as she looked out the window and saw something quite unexpected.

From her vantage point, Star had been able to look out at the ships Jael had called to his side. The Hellion had been wounded from the attack on the White House but was still sky worthy, it drifted only a few precious yards away from Star's window. Next to her was the Mayfair, still in pristine and deadly condition. All three ships were cloaked from spying eyes, but not one from the other. Star had what amounted to a front row seat of what looked to be the beginning of some kind of action. Outside the walls of the Hellion, a couple of the oddest pairs of men were at work. The four of them were dressed in black uniforms, a golden X in a circle on their sleeves, a uniform Star didn't recognize. They worked in pairs, two of them were mules who carried their passengers on their backs as they floated through the air like strange wingless birds. Star had seen enough of Jael's people at work ro recognize more mutants when she saw them. These couples didn't seem familiar to her, they had not met, but then she hadn't met all of Jael's crew by far. The ones being carried were being flown along, their hands glowing with a strange orange light.

_Plasma!_ Star shrieked internally, desiring that forceful, oh so yummy power. She, like all the Kintay, had this weakness. The flavor of plasma was irresistible. Unmovable and trying to control her thoughts, she watched in silence as the two men let fly with their hands and the balls of biologically produced plasma slammed into the already damaged Hellion, breaching the hull with a cataclysmic boom.

"What the fuck was that?!" Jael howled from the bed, rising to his feet. The Cloud Jumper had shuddered and lilted a bit to one side from the aftershock of the explosion, it was far from subtle. Jael stormed to the window and looked out, just in time to watch as the invaders flew right by their great window again. The closest one, a cheerful blond Jael immediately recognized, flipped him off with a shout of triumph.

"Terrel! You bastard!" Jael screamed in outrage. Now he recognized the fellow, but more than that knew that uniform all too well, the black and gold were Xavier's colors. Of course Jael had noticed Terrel's disappearance, but hadn't paid it much mind, there were always some defectors whenever there was a large pullout like he had done back at New York. What he hadn't counted on was Terrel being a spy of Xavier. There was no other explanation for the uniform.

Jael pushed Star aside, reaching for the intercom. He immediately began screaming orders. "What the hell is going on out there?! Follow them! I want them killed and their heads on a fucking plate!"

There was a frightened reply and another shudder as the Cloud Jumper's big engines came to life. Jael dressed quickly and stormed out, not giving Star a second glance.

---------------------------------

Outside the wounded Hellion, Terrel was shouting and whooping with joy and excitement, the hot Arizona wind whipping through his hair. He looked behind him, never letting go of Kurt, his ride for the day. They had made their strike and were now heading towards the Xavier Complex. He was checking to see if their little ploy had been successful. Yes, Jael's big ships were now following them.

Nelson, his partner in power and riding Sam, his own mule, motioned to him. "Don't get too far ahead of them!"

The reply to that came not from Terrel, but from an energy blast from the Cloud Jumper. The mighty ship was far from defenseless once roused to anger and she had fired a plasma cannon at the fleeing pairs. Kurt and Sam both swerved violently apart with a shout as the desert floor below them erupted in fire and smoke. "Holy shit!" Jason screamed and increased his speed, no longer caring if Jael was following or not.

These boys were not from Xavier's camp as Jael had been deliberately led to believe, no, these were Butch Madison's special envoys. Their orders had been simple. Do whatever it takes to get Jael's attention and then lead him on to the Xavier compound. Butch fully believed the X-men more than capable of handling the threat, and if not, Butch was waiting on the sidelines, ready to jump in and bail them out. This way, the bulk of the casualties would fall on Xavier and not on his own people.

Clever was Butch, and very practical. He wanted this war, but didn't want to carry all of the risk. He figured that Xavier was more than capable of handling this mess. He was about to find out if that assumption was true.

----------------------------

Back at the Xavier Complex, Logan took a step forward at the sight of the approaching ships, one raised hand automatically holding Remy back. Jael had come and everyone wanted to do their share, but the Cajun was in no condition to be up here at all never mind fighting. Wolverine was more than qualified to make such a judgement, this wasn't his first battle, not by far.

All his long life, Logan had traveled from one fight to the next. Granted, some of those memories were long buried, but he had access to some. It had been no accident that he ended up in Weapon X, he'd already had quite the military career before those creeps ever got a hold of him. He'd been in two World Wars, most notably World War II where he had been part of the Canadian forces that had landed on the beach in Normandy. When Jael restored Wolverine's memory with his powerful telepath, some of those memories had crept back up on him. He could already smell the stink of war and death before the first blow had even been struck. There was no way Remy could make it here.

The point of having a team was dividing your talents. Gambit was at best a spy and a thief. His bravery was solid as was his loyalty, but the boy was no killer, not like himself. Back on Cerise Remy had done his duty, but the guilt had never left him. Like most of the folks out here, Remy had done some dangerous work, but had almost never been a position like this. This time they were playing for their lives, a very dangerous business indeed.

Some of Wolverine's concern was justified, he looked back to see Remy blanch in reaction to the crowd. Where Logan could smell the fear and panic, this empathic thief felt it right through his very core. Remy had built up his mental shields over the years and did it very well, but there were close to a thousand terrified people out here, not just one or two. He was reeling from the impact of it, almost made sick as his stomach clenched and a stabbing bolt of pain shot through his skull, just behind his eyes. It was followed by a loud crack of thunder, one that boomed like an explosion, increasing the overall tension of this moment. It seemed he wasn't the only one upset, Storm was still feeling the tension as well.

"Stay back, I mean it!" Wolverine snarled, stopping Gambit in his tracks. He could see the thief had gone white and was shaking. He wasn't questioning Remy's bravery, just his ability to stand. Logan knew better than to invite an empath to a war, but they needed everyone they had on hand. "You watch that stairwell, don't you fuckin' move!"

Remy stayed as he was, his face flushed with argument in spite of being so pale, but his mouth closed. He was trembling almost violently now, willing himself to regain control even as he felt his chest tighten. He was trying to calm himself, knowing that he couldn't let his emotions or those of the others rule him. He had never backed down from a legitimate fight and wasn't about to start now. He nodded and let Wolverine leave him, understanding that Logan had work to do, work he could never do himself.

"Don't worry," Jason said, his partner in this. "I've got your back."

Gambit looked at him and nodded, momentarily insulted that he might need covering at all, but kept it to himself. This was no place for one upmanship, they were a team. Jason was a powerful telekinetic, a good man to have at his side. Besides, Gambit knew Aiden was back inside the guard shack. Even now, he could see the faint glimmer of the panicked Siskan's shine just below the window. The Dreamer had stayed put.

"Hey, who is that?" someone shouted.

Remy looked up to see four men, all dressed in familiar black, come swooping past them with a shout. They were in a standard telekinetic formation, two mules with passengers. Funny thing, in spite of the uniforms, he had no clue who these guys were. If they were X-men, they were ones he had never crossed paths with, something rather unlikely. The team was big, but not that big. The alarms had gone off below, screaming Jael's arrival, but it was now clear that the terrorist had been led on by someone with bigger balls than Remy's own.

"What the fuck?!" Wolverine howled, a bellow of outrage easily heard even though the man had gone some distance ahead. He too had recognized the play. These four assholes were going to get them all killed! No order had been given to shine Jael on like that, never mind the fact that no one had a clue where he had been hiding. This had to be some kind of trick to turn them in on themselves, uniforms were easy enough to come by.

_Well, what's done is done. Time to deal with it._ Wolverine turned towards the coming threat, claws out and ready.

--------------------------

There was a scuff and Aiden felt it when the panic hit the crowd of X-men outside his window. The vibrations were powerful and overwhelming, he gasped and covered his mouth, nearly drowning in it. He felt it when the front line moved forward, leaving him behind and alone in the shack. Another fairly loud crack of thunder shook right through him, making his trembling that much worse.

Aiden didn't bother standing up to look out the window at first. It wasn't that he didn't want to get spotted, it was that already knew what he would see.

Jael would be outside, having arrived in three great warships of Dognan design. It had been a long time since Aiden had seen such craft but he knew the sight of them well enough. Trishnar had owned a fleet of these battle cruisers himself and had once brought Aiden on board. They would be huge inside, lavishly furnished and armored, like floating garrisons, room for a thousand or more troops if it came down to it. Perhaps Jael had more space than soldiers, but Aiden's heart told him otherwise.

Unable to resist any longer, Aiden dared to peek out of the bottom of the window, keeping his head down. It was worse than he could ever had imagined.

The sad part about dreams is that they are not always that accurate. The army of X-men seemed so tiny in the face of the enemy that now arrayed itself out before it. Aiden saw maybe a thousand or so black uniforms, arranged in squads each led by a leader. Even though Aiden knew there were still some folks guarding the Complex below, he knew they would never be enough, never.

The first of Jael's great ships had come to a halt and after a moment, its mighty doors had opened. This ship was wounded, a great rent had been torn in its side and smoke was pouring out, but that didn't stop it from spilling out its deadly, fleshly cargo in an organized though very pissed off line. Aiden's suspicions were confirmed as hundreds of alphas came out, all armored and many carrying Dognan plasma energy guns. Just the one ship's crew alone was enough by itself to challenge the X-men's forces and he watched in horror as the other two ships landed and began to unload the same number of soldiers, creating a sea of people that washed out over the tarmac.

Aiden wasn't the only one to be afraid. Someone in the front line screamed in fear and a woman fled, back the way she had come. Someone shouted after her, but Wolverine bellowed at them to hold fast, to keep the line in formation. This thing isn't near over, he was crying, it has only just begun. His words didn't hide his own terror, it shook his voice, made it crack.

Remy cried out and Aiden nearly screamed as the woman who had panicked hit the guard shack he was hiding in and nearly killed herself tumbling down the stairs. She made it though, slamming the door below. Aiden closed his eyes, gripping his chest as he heaved, trying to draw enough air inside of his body. He was terrified beyond belief. This wasn't like the safety of his dreams where he knew he would at some time wake, this was real. This was him wide awake. This was him in a position to be killed.

After a moment, Aiden calmed himself enough to venture another look outside.

Jael's people had spread out, all so causal and happy. They could see that they outnumbered the Xs by far. There was the air of merriment, like this was a party to them. They were alphas of all kinds, shapes and colors, a group far more varied than even the X-men were. They were dressed casually, this army of Jael's would have uniforms it seemed. They were armored and happy with their weapons, all but foaming at the mouth to begin.

A moment later, Jael himself came out of the furthest ship, carried on some strange kind of hovercraft. It was the size of a small car, open at the top, like a giant sled. It looked to be made of some kind of metal with an odd purple and blue cast, and made a strange humming noise as it moved, a sort of hum or song.

Jael wasn't alone, Razel was there and Marcus, both there for his protection. Jael was dressed in full Shalayesk armor, a suit made of the same metal as his craft, and wrapped protectively around him. Only his face and was left exposed, his smile huge and eager. He was fearless and triumphant as he made his way out, settling just in front of the main line of his army.

Razel and Marcus were dressed for battle, decked out in the best fatigues and body armor Jael's money could buy. They both wore headsets that no doubt kept them in close contact with their buddies out in the field. Jael had planned well.

All this was lost on poor Aiden. He shivered at the sight of the hovercraft and then burst into tears. He had recognized on some level that this craft and Jael's armor were both parts of the Shalayesk machine, a creation made possible through the sacrifice of every Angel Jael had gotten his hands on. David was in there somehow and the thought of it was more then Aiden could bear. He closed his eyes on tears, not wanting to see any more.

----------------------------

Wolverine stood fast as Jael arranged his men and got settled. It had taken only a moment for his well experienced eyes to see they would be outclassed and outnumbered, but still Logan held fast to his defensive position. His courage never faltered in spite of the ugly odds, he would go out fighting and take as many of them as he could, that promise he would not break.

Logan saw Jael arrange his troops and had an idea how this might go. Jael was so sure of his advantage and intimidating superior numbers, he might try to negotiate without ever striking a blow, the man was clearly in no rush to get started. There had been no cry or reckless, sloppy attack without orders as Logan had seen in other conflicts. While today's confrontation was no doubt inevitable, perhaps Logan could play along and buy some time for the ones down below to evacuate.

Even before the Complex had been first occupied, long underground tunnels and launch bays for the vertical takeoff capable Blackbirds had been constructed in case of an unexpected attack like this. The planes on display out here on the tarmac were not the only ones the X-men possessed. No doubt the Professor had to know how bad this was shaping up to be and would now be getting the others out.

Warren Worthington, winged X-man and leader of this facility was out front of the Xavier crowd and stepped forward. He'd been a fighter most of his young life and had now settled into the role of administrator. He only hoped now that perhaps a little diplomacy could smooth this over. He could see his own people were far outclassed and that it was up to him to try and get them out of this.

Jael saw Warren there and smiled, gesturing for him to come a little closer, if he dared.

Warren did. He moved out without a visible shred of fear and Jael moved forward on his machine to meet him. "Well, you've got my attention now, boy. I hope you're happy with my response."

Warren gestured to where Terrel and his pals were still circling up in the sky, well back behind the Xavier line of course. "We did not send those men. You're looking for someone else. Take your army off this field."

Jael's laughter was loud and hearty. "You expect me to believe so feeble and excuse? Please!"

Logan growled. What was Warren thinking? As if Jael would even believe that crap. The terrorist was probably just as happy to get this over with as he was himself. All that was left was the bluffing and posturing before the bloodbath. He squared his shoulders and shouted with as much false bravado he could muster. "Too bad yer outclassed, Jael. You should just pack it in now and leave!"

Jael regarded him, immediately dismissing Warren for the non threatening entity he was. "You amuse me, little man. I think it is you who are outclassed. Do you wish now to surrender before you and your compatriots die?"

Logan grinned, showing his teeth. "The only one dyin' here today is you!"

Jael began to reply, but paused when there was a loud commotion from the Xavier crowd, it seemed someone had arrived to crash the party.

The noise had come from Remy himself. Not a moment before Logan had spoken his final challenge, Gambit had turned in a defensive crouch when he heard a door slam behind him. It was the door from the stairwell below the guard shack the thief had been in charge of protecting. Gambit couldn't help but cry out in dismay and alarm when he saw who it was.

Zander was thundering up the stairs, his sword in hand. The Punisher was already snarling and ready, his eyes blazing as he came. "Outta my way!" he growled, already starting to phase as Gambit tried uselessly to block him.

Remy screamed as he felt the ice cold of Zander's center core pass through the left side of his body. Of all the potential intimacies possible with the strange being that Kimble was, this was not one Remy had ever had the pleasure – or displeasure – of sharing before. He'd seen this before of course, and both times had involved Wolverine. Afterwards Logan had grumbled something about sharing Kimble's telepathic thoughts during these phases, but it had been dismissed as Logan's confusion or bad temper. Well, there was no longer any doubt as Zander's anger plowed right through Remy's brain, shouting, _Nobody's gonner touch Kimble's Angel! They'll hafta goes through me first!_

Gambit reeled and staggered, his bo staff tumbling uselessly out of his numbed fingers while he did a dance in painful slow motion as he was literally walked though. The motion spun him, tangling his legs as it froze him with the intensity of every painful memory of Antarctica that had ever tortured him. He reached out with his hands but found nothing to save him. He collapsed and hit the ground hard on his left hip, sending a huge jolt of pain to accompany the one searing through his thigh from the abuse of Kimble's body going through it.

Gambit's hands landed awkwardly, one of them registering a sharper than normal pain. In his dream state lethargy, Remy lifted it, only to discover Kimble's promise ring, the braided platinum treasure the Dreamer had given him, still on its tattered strip of blanket. When Zander had phased, all material things had been dropped, his pants also lay in a crumpled pile just to the right. The sight of Kimble's ring laying so discarded sent a premonition of disaster rocketing through Remy's mind, he couldn't help but snarl a tortured cry of pain and anguish. He was getting slammed from all sides.

Jason was there, grabbing at him. "You okay?"

Remy tried to rise but couldn't make his legs work. He felt himself roughly hauled up by Jason's big hands, but before he could complain, he looked where Zander had gone. The Punisher hadn't even given his former Master a second glance, he'd gone on to confront Jael himself. "Kimble, non!" Remy shouted, his voice cracking with pain. This was going from bad to worse. If he'd thought his planning had all gone to shit before, this was a spectacular sign that nothing had ever been under his control.

If Zander heard him, he gave no sign. He simply kept running and took a huge leap forward, vaulting up into the air and flying over everyone, up over Logan. He landed heavily, coming in between Wolverine and Jael, releasing a pulse of telekinetic energy like a sonic boom. It was loud and terrifying to anyone who didn't know any better.

Jael's front line took a step back, the first sign of fear they had shown.

Jael hesitated as Zander took another step and flicked his wrist, igniting his sword. Orange and red flames seemed to spring to life, flickering around the blade and making it seem just as menacing as it really was. It had claimed life before and would do so again, it seemed to say. Zander howled again, an inarticulate challenge full of rage.

Jael calmed, charmed. "Oh, my. Look at you. You certainly are magnificent in person. Much better than the photos I have seen could possibly have revealed. And to think I've waited this long to finally collect you for myself," he said, looking Zander's naked body up and down in pure admiration. Now here was an interesting fellow, more than poor Simone had been. Jael grinned, wanting to show his he wasn't the least bit put off by Zander's powerful presence. "But I hope you don't think parlor ticks and false displays of power will intimidate me. Did your precious Sheyman ever tell you what a talented Rogue you would become? What a fine job your sword did on Master Creed. That was most excellent. Mary, too. Only she won't be recovering, will she?"

Zander grinned his toothy smile. "Yer pretty words mean nuthin' ta me! Leaves now or die!"

Jael just chuckled an ironic laugh. "The only one dying here today will be you --- after I've taken your Angel of course."

Zander snarled and stepped forward to charge, but froze as a sudden burst of peace and serenity crashed through his mind like a freight train, blasting away his terrible rage into whitewashed bliss. He wasn't the only one who had felt this bizzare intrusion, the whole crowd took a step back, shaking their heads in confusion.

"Well, now. Ain't this a purty sight?"

Zander turned to watch as Asher came casually walking through a sea of black uniforms, men and women who parted for him as if he was Jesus himself come to life in a mythical form. Asher du Shemanatay, the Great Serenity, was in full bloom, sparkling red Morrowhiem was wisping off his body like a heady perfume, affecting everyone it touched. This was Asher's last gamble, his ultimate trick. He was expending the maximum level of his Kundatesh, straining himself almost to the point of breaking. Not that it showed on his face, or to anyone thus affected. Asher was praying that the gift he had been given by God would last long enough for him to prevent this disaster and he would do his best to see it played out before he dropped.

The Punisher was made drunk by Asher's intoxicating magic, swept away in tranquility as the centaur came closer, so much so that Zander was quickly vanquished and Kimble came to the fore, bewildered and shocked to find himself out here on the front line of two armies poised on the edge of destruction. If it wasn't for Asher's warm and fuzzy glow, he would have been pissing himself in fear.

Asher kept his steady easy pace until he was out front, in the middle of the gap between forces. His cloud of Morrowhiem had been swept broadly over the gathered assembly by the Arizona crosswind and was in full effect. He looked down on them all like naughty children. "Shame on alla yous, alla this fussin' an' fightin'. Let's see if we cain't settles this all reasonable, huh?"

-----------------------------

Asher had been a busy boy, so he had. Only minutes before and down below in the Complex, he had been shocked by Aiden and Kimble's sudden departure, but not helpless. Resigned to his fate, he had soothed Angel as best he could. "Hey, kiddo. It'll be all right."

Angel looked up at him, her eyes trusting. "Are you going to help my daddy?"

"I shure am. Now, let's say we helps yer Molly first."

Time being of the essence, Asher carefully lifted her from the couch and made his way to Kimble's bedroom. He didn't feel safe leaving her exposed on Kimble's couch but there was no time for him to go and find the Danger Room shelter Remy had spoken of. If he was to act, it would have to be soon, before the hostilities got out of hand. Asher went inside Kimble's bedroom and carefully lay Molly's body inside Kimble's huge closet, propping her up with pillows and laying a blanket over her to make her as comfortable as possible. He collected the two door guards and lay them inside as well, showering them with Morrowhiem to keep them quiet. He next turned to Angel. "You gots ta stay here with thems and keeps watch. Okay?"

Angel had nodded, her eyes showing fear but no small amount of determination. She curled up next to Molly, pulling the blanket over her shoulders some for comfort.

Asher patted her head, wisping Morrowhiem from his fingers to calm her. "Stay here, keeps quiet. If ya thinks ya gots trouble, the phone's right here."

"It'll be okay," Angel said, showing her strength. "Aiden saw it in a dream. Nothing bad will happen to us."

Asher smiled, won over by her certainty. "All righty then. Now you gots to helps me here and watch fer m' Smee as well," he said, laying the violet Mumbler in her lap.

"Safey safe in here it 'tis," Smee mumbled and snuggled up close, his nose tickling Angel's chin and making her giggle a little.

Asher laughed a little at the sound. He kissed her gently and said, "Now I gots ta go see if I kin gits to yer Siskans b'fore they goes an does sumpthin' stupid." He left her, heading for the nearest flight of stairs and towards his destiny.


	3. Chapter 3

Notes : Just a quick note here to anyone who is interested. I have been uploading artwork for these chapters as I go along. Art for the first two chapters is already up and art for this third chapter should be up on Monday. :)

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(Three)

Outside on the tarmac, Gambit found his feet, Asher's Kundatesh washing over him like a revitalizing burst of energy. He felt his strength return as his chest loosened and the pain in his head vanished, but his sanity was still in question at the moment. He was left in quite the fix – all of his Siskans were now accounted for and not a one of them was where he should be. If they were all up here, who had Molly and Angel?

Torn between staying with his Siskans or going after his women, Remy was fixed in place, unable to do anything more than watch as Asher worked his magic. Remy'd had no idea Asher was this powerful. The centaur had mesmerized or at least calmed the intentions of close to four thousand people with his Kundatesh alone. Gambit had no idea how long Asher could maintain his spell and whispered a silent prayer of thanks for the bright bold sunshine of this afternoon that still peeked through the gathering clouds. Perhaps it would be enough to sustain the Siskan enough to get this sorted out.

Jael was watching the Grey at work, his smile wide and pleased. He could feel the affects of the Siskan's power but wasn't fully under. The Shalayesk armor was protecting him somewhat and whispering secrets into his mind, telling him how glorious it would be to own this one and feel this lovely glow forever. Asher made Star's glow feel like a match light to a lightening bolt.

Asher faced his would be owner with all the confidence any Siskan had ever felt with his own prowess. He smiled and spoke his words, his voice carrying over through his magic so all could hear him even though they were far away. "In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, maker of all that is good an' right, I'm askin' ya ta takes yer army and leaves. There ain't no need fer fightin'. Only for peace."

Jael burst into laughter. Of all the things he had expected this one to say, that wasn't even close. "Oh, this is too precious," Jael replied around a wry chuckle. "Don't tell me they've got you believing that foolishness! And who do you think you are? Their Messiah?"

Asher just shook his head with a weary smile. "_Yeshua Hamashiach_ has already come and gone on this world," he replied, using the Hebrew word for Messiah in the hopes it would give him strength. "All that remains is His wisdom. Look at yer people. Think of all the good you kin accomplish if ya'll used them ta helps the world instead of wreckin' it like ya been."

Jael guffawed once more, shattering the illusion that Asher had any control over him at all. That one action seemed to galvanize Jael's crew and they lost some of their sluggishness. Asher's spell was fading.

Nervous but trying to hide it, Asher wasn't about to give up so easily. "What good will it be to own this world only to destroy it with yer greed and misery? Think of what could be accomplished if alla us combined our powers to make this place a paradise fer everyone, not just a few."

Jael's smile spread into something wicked. "This world will be mine -- and I don't share."

Asher's voice raised a little in his exasperation. Knowing his moment was slipping away, the Siskan tried his best to evangelize, using the same argument that had failed only days before. He was hoping, probably foolishly so, that these people would now listen when the others had not. "What's the matter with alla yous? Cain't you sees how stupid this petty war is? It won't never accomplish what ya wants! Yer all possessions of God, each an' every one. See how he's blessed alla yous and yer treatin' his gifts like things ya earned on yer own. You wuz given these things to do good, not this evil. Yer souls are the only things that matter cuz they're the only things yer gonna takes with ya when yer dead an' gone. You don't turn all this around, yer gonna lose those very precious souls fer a bunch of useless wealth that won't serves ya when y'all come ta Judgement."

Jael howled laughter again, and this time the crowd on his side joined him. Asher's spell was now broken, his Morrowhiem was all but spent and they were recovering. Recovering and not listening.

Asher closed his eyes on rising tears and held his cross, saying a final prayer for strength. He had risked everything to come out here like this -- Jael probably hadn't known he existed until now. Asher was risking his own freedom and perhaps even his own life. He opened his eyes and dared to shout, gesturing to the army of X-men. "If ya won'ts leave, then I offers m'self in return fer yer withdrawal. My life fer alla theirs!"

Logan could help but grunt in surprise. Zealots in general made him queasy and martyrs even worse, but he couldn't help but admire Asher's brass. He knew the Siskan was sincere. He had recognized the title Asher had earlier used for Jesus. In his travels, Logan knew large chunks of many languages, had even been to Jerusalem more than once. He took some comfort that the deranged centaur at least hadn't taken the title of Messiah for himself, Asher wasn't crazy, just exceedingly reckless in his faith that God was going to solve all of his problems. Too bad all that was going to happen was that Asher was going to get himself martyred for his faith.

"My dear boy," Jael replied. "You're mine already. By rights you became mine the moment of Trishnar's death. Besides, there's nothing so special about you that I would forsake your brothers. I will not be satisfied with anything less than the three of you. No, I will not leave here until all of you are mine and in my service."

Asher raised his chin in defiance, shouting clearly, "I serves only The Father, the Almighty, the maker of all worlds. His word alone commands me!"

Jael strongly disagreed. He shook his head and snarled in his arrogance, "You are my property, little boy, and it is your destiny to serve me. You will become a fully functional member of my personal harem, blended skin or not, young man. It is something I am very much looking forward to."

"You might be able ta takes my body, but my heart an' my soul belong to God. I serves no other!" Asher repeated, not backing down an inch.

"As long as your mouth takes my cock, you can do with your heart as you like," Jael sneered. He gestured to a man beside him, a telekinetic who was as big as he was blonde. "Brendan?"

"Yes, my Lord."

"Take him."

Asher braced himself for the attack, holding steadfast to his vow of non-violence. Brendan came forward and snatched at Asher, expecting a fight, but receiving none. He tugged on Asher's arm in an attempt to force him to follow, but Asher had planted his feet and wasn't moving. He wasn't fighting, but he wasn't moving either. Brendan forced the issue, using his power, but was met with firm resistance. Asher glared at him, defiance wild in his eyes. "Jesus loves you, Brendan. More than this man you call Master. His rewards are greater than any you've ever seen. Lets me go!"

Brendan's response was a snarl and a telekinetically assisted blow to Asher's face.

Asher's legs buckled from the punch and gel blood poured from his nose. He had no shields, no way to stop the strike from happening. It weakened his hold on the ground and he was spilled forward, forced to march towards Jael's side of the tarmac.

Asher might not have been up to fighting, but Zander was all over it. At the sight of the blow, he had quickly regained control of Kimble's body and charged. He howled with rage and launched himself into the air, sword blazing. He pushed Asher aside with a telekinetic shove and hacked Brendan down before the man could even react. Asher landed clumsily on his side with a grunt and was splattered with blood and gore as Brendan was halved with one swing of Zander's blade. Asher screamed, wild with horror and panic. "Zander, no! Not this! You promised!"

"Git back!" Zander snarled and gave Asher another violent telekinetic push without waiting for the centaur to rise. While it was merely Zander's intention to remove Asher from danger, he had acted without thinking as he forced Asher back to the Xavier side without delicacy or care. Asher howled in agony, the skin of his side was shredded along the pavement like felt through a cheese grater as he was violently moved back and away. Zander never noticed, he was much too busy to pay full attention --- at his first movement, Jael's troops had come forward.

The war had begun.

------------------------

Logan began shouting orders the moment Jael's people broke ranks and charged. So it had come to this, an all out brawl. Fine -- he'd rather die on his feet in defense of his people than anywhere else. He made a beeline for Zander, planning to back him up and to hopefully give Asher a chance to retreat.

Asher rose to his feet, his side rent and bleeding from having been so rudely scraped along the pavement. The injury was ugly and huge, gel blood dripped from him along the rags of his torn hide that dangled down. His skin was real to the last detail -- ugly red rib bones, not real but looking so all the same, revealed the depth of the wound. He didn't go far, but stood as he was, his legs shaking with shock and trauma, his head down as he began to cry. He was drained of power, having used most of his resources to charm the crowd, and was swamped by the emotions of the crowds surging for battle. He was as good as helpless.

Wolverine came to Asher's aid, making a face at the ugly damage to his side. He had no idea the skin could display damage so realistically, it was hard to convince himself that this was really a superficial wound and not life threatening --- at least not if he could get Asher out of the path of the fight. "Get downstairs, now! You can't do anything more up here!" he ordered, wanting the centaur down below so he was out of the way.

Asher couldn't move, he was wasted. "Just leaves me. It's all for nuthin' nohow!" he bawled, in pain on so many levels, not just from the great wounding on his side. He cried through blubbering sobs, "I'd rather be dead! Jesus, Lord, takes me! There ain't no savin' a one of 'em!"

Wolverine growled with impatience. Where Asher had first appeared so strong and captivating, now he was wailing like a little girl. This was more than he could stand. "Get back!" he commanded, this time shoving Asher back and away like he was diseased. "You done what ya could an' it didn't work! Now get the fuck back!"

Asher recoiled from Logan's loathing and staggered the way he'd been shoved, his head down without even looking where he was going. He was swallowed up in black as others joined the front, ready to fight.

Wolverine didn't bother following up on Asher's progress, he turned back to the task at hand. Zander was in the thick of it, his sword busy as he took on his next opponent, a Green Channeler Siskan, his sister and one on a par with himself. They clashed with a loud clatter and went to work. At first Logan was worried. What fighting skills did Kimble possess, really?

He need not have been concerned, Zander knew enough for the both of them. He remembered all the things Kyle Franks and Joshua had taught both him and Lakotashay years ago, and he used those lessons well. He had spent time with Kimble these past weeks, honing their skills and getting ready. The files were imprinted memory and wouldn't be forgotten, not in the service of his precious Mistress.

Zander bobbed and weaved defensively, moving with a feline animal grace as he countered every stroke of his opponent. He managed to catch the woman off guard and next cut her in half with a huge swing. Her body exploded with energy as she died, her scream loud in her throat. The energy inside of her came out from her body in a bolt like lightening and it channeled back through Zander's sword. He screamed from the surge and fell back on his ass and elbows, convulsing.

"Damnit!" Jael complained. "She was my strongest!"

Wolverine had rushed up to where Zander had fallen, his claws out and ready. He hacked at a couple of Jael's guys as they made for Zander, a special prize, and held his ground.

Zander only needed a minute to recover and Logan had given him that. His body was still smoking from the sudden influx of energy, but he seemed not to care one bit. He got up, smiling wickedly, his teeth bared in savage glee.

Logan couldn't help but sense the feral kindred spirit in that smile. While Asher had proven ineffectual and feeble, Zander was a savage force to be reckoned with, ready for round two with an earnest heart. He seemed recharged from the energy he'd been blasted with, now that he'd had a moment to catch his breath. He was positively rippling with power and righteous wrath. The Siskan laughed a dry, malicious laugh and gestured to the ongoing battle. "After you, lovely!"

Logan grinned, ready for it, but then froze as his vision blurred for a moment. There was a break in the fight to the right, a pocket of free space that was now no longer empty. The air there seemed to ripple and was filled by the most amazing sight.

Skye had arrived and in style.

As Asher had once predicted, Skye wasn't about to sit this one out. Skye had picked his moment. He came out now, tall and straight, exuding confidence and power, his flame red hair streaming behind him like a banner. His precious pets were still on their leashes and roaring loudly, eager for play. Logan's mouth popped open and hung there, he couldn't believe his eyes.

Creed was decked out in tight black spandex pants, around his neck was a large studded collar, _**"My Toy"**_ clearly engraved on a large tag that dangled down from the front. This man who was once a Master of a Siskan had done a full 360 turnabout, he was the one who was controlled, the one no longer in charge. He came out almost completely on his hands and feet, a large blonde pet. He was restrained by a long leather leash snapped to the back of his leather collar, held tightly in the grip of his Master. He saw Jael and howled savagely, his eyes red with rage. His lips spread with that inarticulate challenge, revealing teeth almost impossibly large and sharp, his canines were back and larger than before. His hands were spread, his birthright talons long and gleaming, wicked and promising death to any that got in his way. He lunged but was held in place by his Master who was far more than he looked.

More shocking than that — if such a thing was possible — was the appearance of Wildchild. It had been so long since Logan had seen him, he'd forgotten the scrawny runt even still existed. Famayalin was dressed and restrained as his larger counterpart was, but he was far more mutated than the Canadian scientists had created him to be. He had the hind legs of a cat and long savage fangs, he was a cougar to Creed's lion and no less deadly.

"Sweet fuckin' Jeezus!" Logan gasped, not quite believing what he was seeing.

He wasn't the only one. Yards away, Jael was still on his Shalayesk machine, holding back a bit as the battle took place in front of him. He was barking orders, communicated by Razel at his side. What he saw now astonished him, he wasn't the least bit prepared for Skye's interruption.

"What devilry is this?!" Jael laughed nervously, glancing to Marcus who would no doubt defend him if these blonde monsters should try to charge. Jael recognized the lions of course, though he couldn't fathom how either could still be alive. It had to be some kind of illusion designed to fool him. "Is this some kind of joke?"

Skye was too far away to hear the half Dognan terrorist, but he noticed he had caught the attention of Zander and Wolverine at least. He grinned at them, his smile evil personified. "Nice day, innit? Fer a bloodbath I means."

"Who the hell are you?!" Logan snarled thought there was a glimmer of an idea forming in his mind. Teleportation, bare feet, two snarling freaks, cannibals both, one of them his missing half brother without a doubt. Was this Jennah's killer?

Skye laughed and shifted his skin. Revealed now as his true self, the Siskan stood strong and powerful, a large tattoo blazing down his chest. This was new skin to all, one Skye kept private to himself. His hair was long and brown, his eyes soulful and sad as were all the Rogue 'grams. His Mark was a bright yellow and the only one of its kind.

"Who am I? Heh, I'm the one what's gonner win this thing." Skye stoked a hand down the long length of the sword in a slow sensual movement. He raised his head and shouted his Title with pride, "**Catalyst!**"

At the shout and shift change, Jael snarled with rage, a sound that carried across the battle. All it did was make Skye smile all the wider. He looked down upon his beasts, "Y'all knows what to do. Fly, my pretties!"

Skye unclasped his lions and they sprang forward, howling with savage glee at being finally free to act. His small army now unleashed, Skye vanished in a twinkling. He hadn't come here to actually fight himself. Logan was pushed aside and swiped as Kristalay passed him, too much in a spin to react in time. The injury was nothing, just enough to know he'd been shoved aside. The race for Jael was on and he'd just been left behind. Wolverine growled and gave chase.

--------------------------

Remy and Jason were busy, covering the stairwell. The tarmac had several guard shacks, each one being covered as a way down. Their orders were simple -- no one gets down. Once the armies had surged, the larger force of Jael's men had broken through the X-men's line, heading for any way to get into the Complex itself.

Gambit was reeling from the shock of an empathy overload. With all the mental anguish around him, he was being bombarded by all sides. It was like trying to work with a piercing, blinding headache. Normally, he loved to fight. It was an excuse to test his body, stretch his body to its limits. He was more of a sprinter than an endurance brawler, but loved a good tussle, especially when the cause was just.

There was no sign of either the sprinter or the endurance runner in this bout. Gambit was reacting now on pure instinct, not even thinking properly as he used his bo staff to his fullest, thwacking back those who would challenge his right to this little bit of territory and tossing charged missiles when he got the chance. Before he left his apartment, he'd loaded his pockets with whatever metal bits he could find -- ball bearings, nuts and bolts, whatever he had. They flew far, but were like lead weights on his heart. Gone was his grace and fine dance, he was down to an economy of movement, good enough to get the job done, but it wasn't pretty or anywhere near his usual self.

Jason was beside him, saying little as he took on the bulk of the fight. It had been clear early that Remy's battle effectiveness had been compromised early and the guy wasn't really making it. That was all right, Jason's confidence was buoyed by the fact that in spite of his failings, Gambit stood his ground valiantly and never once tired to flee. No matter how many times he was knocked down or hit, the thief got right back up again, not whining, just plodding forward with the crazed exhaustion hysteria could bring.

Lost in the fight, Remy never noticed when they were joined by their hidden compatriot from the shed. Aiden had enough of watching Remy get pummeled, and he was at a bit of loss, waiting for whatever it was he was driven out here to do. He might as well contribute something while he waited for his mysterious mission to be revealed.

Jason wasn't so blind, but the flash of sparkling blue tattoo that was so much like the Purple guy and the Grey guy was enough to reveal just whose side this newcomer was on. Being telekinetic as well, Aiden was now a welcome ally. The Dreamer was outraged and pumped up, letting blunted spikes fly low, tripping up those he could that came close. He respected Asher enough to at least try not to be immediately lethal, but that time was slowly coming to an end. They were being overwhelmed. Everywhere they turned, someone was coming at them with a gun or a knife.

Or worse.

One of Jael's guys came up close and howled with glee as he tossed out a handful of plasma balls, like shiny glowing marbles of death, exploding them at the defending threesome with the accuracy of any X-man. Jason and Aiden covered Remy as best they could with shields as they were engulfed in heat and flame. It was enough to take the brunt of the attack, but Remy didn't get up when it was over. He'd been badly abused by those that had come at him before Aiden had backed him up and he was just plain exhausted. What a complete waste of time this had been, he was as good as useless out here. His body was one huge agony and he couldn't feel his wounded leg anymore, it was lost somewhere in the fog of pain.

Aiden's fingers brushed the bare skin of his face, sending a shock of heat and power through him as he was hit with an adrenilizing bolt of Kundatesh. "Get up!" Aiden snarled, yanking him up.

Remy found his feet and went back to work, but he was in a daze, back to lashing out with his staff without truly knowing what he was doing. He wasn't the only one reaching his end, Jason was staggering on his feet. The shield that had protected them from the explosion had weakened him, he was just about done and ready to fall.

It wasn't long in coming.

There was a loud boom, a shout and then a scream of agony. Remy watched in horror as another of Jael's men came in, this time firing a Dognan energy gun. Gambit was all too familiar with these alien weapons, the closest description would be some kind of disintegrating death ray. Anyone shot with it dissolved into a glowing, gooey mess. Jason had seen him coming and threw up a shield, but even that could not stop this devastating weapon. The shot came at the shield, hit it, and clung there like evil glowing snot. As much as Jason tried to maintain the integrity of the shield, the evil clinging to it melted through. Exhausted, Jason fell back with a cry as his shield finally dissolved, allowing the energy stuck to it to fall. Orange, glowing death fell on Jason in a wide spatter pattern across his front and he screamed in agony as his body began to melt.

Gambit rushed forward to protect his teammate but it was too late. Jason was howling in agony, writhing and thrashing even as his body began to dissolve. Muscle, bone and internal organs were exposed as Jason's clothes gave way under the glowing acidic goo. Jason's cries became the tortured groans of the mortally wounded as he staggered back into Remy's arms, essentially dumped there as his legs gave way. Gambit held him instinctively, his arms now full, all too painfully aware that there was nothing more he could do. Jason was going to die and there was nothing that was going to stop that. Remy broke into tears of frustration and sympathy, even as he gagged on the sickly sweet smell of Jason's sizzling flesh. Nothing he had ever been trained to do had prepared him for the moment he would hold a dying man in his arms while hundreds more fell all around him.

Aiden hadn't been standing idly by. He had dispatched the shooter quickly with spikes, non-lethality no longer an option, and made a grab for the gun, he wasn't about to let anyone else use it on them again. Once they were clear of enemies for the moment, he then stood beside Remy and saw what needed to be done. It was over before Remy could do anything, all he saw was the white blur of Aiden's busy hands and then the sickening crack of Jason's neck being snapped, Aiden had put the dying man's suffering to an end. Gambit wheezed a strangled cry of mental agony as he saw Jason's shine flicker and wink out in a flash, he was now holding a corpse.

He wasn't alone in his agony. At the moment of the kill, he and Aiden had locked eyes. The Siskan's pale green eyes were fixed for a moment, glowing with a sort of savage gleeful rage Remy could not identify other than to guess it was the sort of thing one would see in the eyes on one who had won the battle. For that moment, Aiden was gone and it was someone new standing there, a face Remy had never seen before. Not quite Aiden, not quite Zander, but just as deadly, a killer. Krishnak perhaps, though he never spoke.

When he saw Gambit's shock and horror looking back at him, Aiden snarled a strange guttural growl and turned away, no longer able to face what he saw reflected back at him in Gambit's eyes. Aiden's voice broke as he howled Muzla obscenities and threw more spikes now with wild abandon, killing anyone who came close with deadly accuracy. He had slipped away from sanity for the moment, letting his desire for revenge on Jason's behalf take him. Jael had started this, let him bury his own dead. Aiden was quite efficient, the Gladiator in him never forgotten.

Remy was soon surrounded by more corpses, the blood thick around his feet. He crashed to his knees, Jason's body heavy against him, the sight of it blurred by tears that poured down his face. He knew what Aiden had done was a mercy, but the shock of Aiden's quick and efficient dispatch and the look on the Siskan's face afterward made his stomach wrench and his chest tighten. He wondered if there was something he should say to the dead man still in his arms, but he couldn't think of anything, not one word. Not while the battle raged around him like he was nothing more than a spectator.

_Don't worry, Uncle Remy_, came a voice into his head, one he would know anywhere. _Jason's in a happy place now, I can feel it._

"Angel..?" he rasped, his red and black eyes looking up to see her standing right in front of him. As much as he wished this was a ghost, he knew it wasn't. "Oh, chere, what you doin'..?" This was going from bad to worse, as if that was even possible.

_It's okay_, she answered, her lips not moving at all though they were dressed in a strange, glowing smile. _Aiden's gonna catch me._

"Quoi?"

There would be no answer. The crowd seemed to part behind her and someone came running, a tall running Siskan, a Mark as blue as Aiden's own blazing down his chest. In his hands he held a jagged crystal machete, one he threw back and tossed with some skill. "For Jael!" he howled, "For my Master!"

Remy screamed as he saw the machete fly, seeing all too plainly where it was headed. It hit its mark, slicing through the tiny girl like she was made of air.

Remy howled once more in agony at the sight of it, but he didn't hear his own words. It had all gone quiet, like a sick dream. He saw Angel's body break apart in a most unnatural way, falling away into shards like autumn leaves blown about with the wind. The force of it blew back her attacker and a powerful volley of Aiden's spikes held him there.

Jael's Receiver snarled, "She's mine!" in his frustration. He was pinned and struggling to right himself but he was stuck fast from Aiden's spikes.

"Over my dead body!" Aiden growled in return, never stopping. He took advantage of the other's helplessness and held his ground, surging forward in a powerful run, his only goal to fulfill his promise and keep Angel for his own, even if it was only her lifeless body.

Remy didn't couldn't comprehend what these two were even fighting over, Angel was clearly fatally wounded. He was in pain, his heart breaking, but he still saw it when it happened, when Angel's body started to change. Out from the midst of her came a bright glowing ball of golden energy. Before Jael's Receiver could even reach out to her, Aiden was there, his arms outstretched, a look of total terror on his face, but one of knowing acceptance as well, as he caught her.

The collision was cataclysmic and loud, blowing everyone around them back onto their ass. Aiden howled inarticulate agony as his body turned a bright yellow and changed into something else. He rose up into the sky, his body liquid and melting as he became a marvelous glowing woman, her arms out like wings and a huge smile on her face. "Daddy!" she shouted. "Daddy! I'm flying!"

--------------

Zander jerked around at the explosion, his head twisting around like a horse being reined in violently. Logan had left Zander behind so he could chase Kristalay and Famayalin, leaving the Punisher on his own. The Siskan instinctively knew what had happened at the moment of impact, a cry of dismay leaving him. He left the battle and leapt into the air, following her. "Angel!"

He wasn't the only one who witnessed the collision."Nnooo!" Jael screamed, furious. He had seen Aiden's Mark just a moment too late, and knew of its significance. How foolish he had been to let this one escape from Trishnar's palace --- Aiden was a Receiver.

Jael was thrown into a whole new realm of pissed off. Now he would have to collect this Receiver to finish the machine, not an easy task given that the highly powerful Zander was flying swiftly to Aiden's side. Not an easy task, yes, but not impossible. Jael screamed orders at Razel who forwarded them to the troops, everyone was descending on the pair of Siskans now in the sky.

They were met by a rallying group of Xavier's telekinetics. While Logan and Scott's territory was the tarmac, Jean and Storm's was the sky. They quickly marshaled who they could and they rushed to where Angel was floating carelessly, laughing at nothing, as if she wasn't in the middle of a war. Golden glitter was swirling out of out her body like sparkling bees, like she was human firecracker up in the sky. How she laughed and laughed.

Zander was there first, engulfing her possessively in his arms. He knew instinctively that she was gone, that this wasn't really her that he was holding. His job failed, his purpose gone, he threw his head back and howled his misery, relinquishing control back to Kimble who bawled out his anguish with inarticulate sobs.

"It's okay, daddy," the angel woman said, stroking his hair back, oblivious to the battle raging around them. Jael's people had clashed with the protectors in black, but she didn't seem to care. "It's okay," she said. "It's okay because Aiden caught me."

"Angel!!" Kimble bawled in pure agony. He had nothing more to say.

The Angel woman gripped him tightly and began to whisper in his ear. She never finished what she had to say. A flying ball of plasma collided with them both, exploding all around them like a bomb.


	4. Chapter 4

(Four)

Remy was numb. He just sat on his knees, the bloody remains of Jason still draped in his arms. He was white and shaking, drenched in blood and gore, nothing left inside as he looked up with detached fascination at the events unfolding in the sky. He was momentarily protected from the fight, everyone close by who was left standing was busy watching the events up in the sky. Zander had rushed to Angel's side seemingly in time to get smashed with a plasma bomb. The sky exploded in orange and red and the two Siskans fell from above like shot birds, collapsing in a golden, tangled heap in front of Remy, falling like broken toys in a cloud of golden fairy dust.

Remy stayed as he was, laughing now as his mind was blasted away by the absurdity of this whole thing, it was so surreal. Golden angels falling from the sky, glitter clouding everywhere. He had no logical explanation for how the two of them landed whole and not in a lake of orange slag, it was just another funny thing. Thank you, Lord, for this round of merriments. Neither of the pair were moving nor breathing, they just lay there like rag dolls, burnt and smoking, in a disjointed pile of limbs and wings.

Gambit carefully lay Jason's lifeless body to one side, no longer needing it, and crawled forward to touch the Angel woman's face. The moment his fingers brushed her skin, she suddenly shifted and became Aiden again, now pale and white, soot covered and burned, his naked body red raw and scorched in places, but not unduly so. His clothes were gone, but Remy was quick to note that Aiden's promise ring lay unharmed on its strip of blanket as if by magic. Aiden jerked and he took a violent, shuddering breath, returning to life as he began to tremble from shock and pain. It had been Aiden's body that impacted the ground first, Kimble had remained on top and had been spared the worst of the landing. He lay on top of his lover, held there even now by Aiden's protective embrace. Aiden's eyes were open and sightless, he was still very much alive if not entirely awake. His head lolled to one side as he gasped something unintelligible, inspired by Remy's movement against him, and golden liquid poured from his lips like blood, sizzling a little as it hit the pavement.

The bizzare sight of the golden fluid spilling out from Aiden's mouth suddenly snapped Gambit back to reality. Here was the Dreamer, alive and breathing in spite of his injuries. There was still something left to fight for, something left to be saved. He jerked into action, tugging at Aiden, less than gentle in his haste, and began to drag the two Siskans back towards the stairwell.

Somehow he managed to do this one thing, to haul them the short distance to the stairs. He pulled Aiden's torso up into his arms, Kimble still laying on top, and awkwardly dragged the couple down the stairs, one thump at a time. It was hard going, Aiden's body was hot to the touch as though he was burning with fever, there was a light sheen of gel sweat covering him now. Tears were still streaming from Gambit's eyes, the air was filled with smoke and death, but he could do this one thing. He focused on the task at hand, seeing and thinking of nothing else, and then just when he thought his strength was going to give out, the door behind him opened and Henry was there. "Give them to me."

"Non!" Remy challenged possessively, his voice almost unrecognizable from shock and misery. He wasn't going to give them up, not now, not ever again.

Beast was stronger than that and more than talented enough to see Remy's obvious hysteria. "They're safe now, Remy. Let me take them. Look at me."

Gambit looked up into Henry's eyes, seeing him suddenly. "Quoi?" he questioned stupidly. He had nothing left. " 'Enry?"

"Yes, I'm right here. What happened?"

Gambit was too dazed to even know where to begin. Angel was dead, he couldn't even speak the words, so he came up with the simplest thing he could think of, "Dey got a little melted. Aiden, 'e... Aiden, 'e took in some kind of energy. It change 'im. 'E was flyin' den dey fell."

"It's okay," Henry soothed. He could see Gambit was dazed and unable to properly explain. He would see to Remy after but first he wanted the Siskans out of the stairwell. "Let's get them to bed."

Beast took the bulk of the weight of the unconscious Siskans and they finished the job of moving them inside. Just inside the door, Henry had set up an ad hoc medical station. This door wasn't far from the nearest nurses station and he had taken advantage of that. What had frightened Henry most of all was that so few wounded had come down his way. Procedures for dealing with the wounded had been set in place at the same time that the drill exercises had been worked out. There should have been more folks coming down, but it had been eerily quiet. It made him fear that there was a lot more killing going on out there than wounding and it made him very sad indeed. He was in radio contact with multiple medical stations on this level, each near an exit, and mostly his staff was kept waiting.

Now with a task at hand, Beast lifted Aiden, who still stubbornly refused to release Kimble, and dumped them both onto a waiting gurney. He had no idea how Aiden was even holding onto Kimble so hard, as far as he could tell the Dreamer wasn't even conscious, no matter what Remy might have heard. He was unresponsive and his pupils fixed and dilated, the perfect image of a dead man who simply refused to stop breathing. Of the pair, only Aiden seemed to be so warm, Kimble appeared to be nothing more than merely asleep. A puzzle to be solved later.

"Sit," Henry ordered to Remy, pushing him gently against the wall and helping him as the thief slid to the floor. "Stay here. I'll be right back."

Henry grabbed the gurney with the two Siskans and wheeled it away quickly, heading for the main Med Lab and leaving Remy on his own.

Gambit stayed in place, simply breathing, as hard as it was. He had a moment of quiet, but jerked in numb surprise when he heard an explosion rock the door in front of him, followed by a thump and a groan. He found his feet and charged two cards in his hand, an automatic movement, one he never even felt. He dared to open the door and saw the burnt and smoking bodies of two of Jael's men come tumbling out at his feet. Remy gagged automatically and retched, tossing up what was left of his breakfast, the piece de resistance to his complete and utter uselessness today.

He stood there, frozen at the sight of the mess at his feet, and then burst into hysterical laughter, the second bout for the day. It was all he had left -- the anger, sadness and misery had been burnt right out of him. He looked up to see Neal Sharra at the top of the stairs, his brown head quirked to one side. Neal shook his head and said with some amusement, "Well, you gonna come up and fight or just stand there and puke? Come on, X-man, this isn't over yet!"

Remy found himself oddly inspired by this young man's courage in the face of disaster and stumbled over the human wreckage at the door to climb up the steps. Neal held out his hand and Remy took it. "Let's go, mon ami."

"To the end."

Remy smiled. "To de end."

-----------------------------

If Henry had known the real reason he wasn't getting the wounded he was expecting, he would have been very frightened indeed.

Scott Summers, Cyclops to many and the man mostly in charge topside, had seen his share of fights, but nothing on this scale. Most often the X-men fought in small teams and squads or gathered together to fight one large foe, but they had never faced an army like this. This was war for real and Jael was playing for keeps. The field of battle was littered with the dead and dying, the air filled with the screams of the agonized.

What was making this worse was the added threat of energy producers. It was clear early on that Jael had them seriously outclassed on that score. It was only a matter of minutes before Scott was howling into his headset, ordering that the shield generator have its range shortened to increase the strength of the shield. It was enough to keep the main Complex building protected but that was it. Guard shacks and outbuildings were soon burning and the two Blackbirds that had been parked on the tarmac were toast. There were more planes parked below so that wasn't a total loss, but the smoke was huge. He had no idea how this fight was going to escape public notice. It would only be a matter a time before SHIELD showed up making this a whole lot worse. They could use the extra hands in the fighting, but there would be too much legal crap they would have to deal with afterwards.

Assuming they didn't all die first.

Not much for pessimism, Cyclops continued to bawl orders into his headset even as he fired off blasts of energy into the oncoming crowd of fighters. He was the master of multitasking and he was making lightning fast decisions and making quick and accurate defensive shots with his visor. Having eyebeams as a weapon was never more valuable than now, he was all point and shoot as he picked off enemies one at a time and clearing a path.

His forward motion gave him a front row seat for something that chilled him to the bone. Jael had many resources in his disposal for this little fracas. He wasn't going to let a valuable tool like his depowering gun lay idle in a closet. He'd ordered it offloaded the Cloud Jumper and it was being moved and powered by two white pilots under the direction of the lovely purple quilled Shakra. Shakra was shouting orders and the pilots were firing indiscriminately into the crowd where the X-men were clumped into larger numbers. Yeah, they were depowering everyone, but it was the Xavier people being hardest hit. The pilots would fire and their victims would fall, momentarily dazed by the weapon even as they became depowered and helpless. Shakra would then order a plasma producer beside her to fire on them, melting the whole group down into slag. No one was walking away and Scott was now losing people by the handful. It had to be stopped and stopped now.

Scott was horrified at the callousness of Jael for doing this but it went part in parcel with the guy's ruthlessness. The man would simply replace those he lost. If Jael lost one man to Xavier's four, it was still to his advantage.

Well, not for long.

"Storm!" Scott shouted into his headset. "I need you in sector H!"

"Coming!" came her swift reply.

Storm, the resident weather witch came on the fly, swooping down and seeing instantly what to do. Though none of the X-men were natural killers, there came a time when there was a need to shoot first and sort it all out later. Any meteorologist or storm chaser would have loved to see the lightning display Storm unleashed on Shakra and her little pals. Not one, but several bolts shot down from the sky and landed right on top of the pilots firing the depowering gun, frying them and it instantly.

Cyclops stepped back, cowering slightly against the cries of shock and agony as the two pilots were electrocuted right before his eyes and the gun exploded into dust, sending a cloud of sparks out and away. Shakra was spared only by jumping forward into the fighting and maneuvering herself into a clump of black uniforms. She was counting on Storm's unwillingness to fry her own teammates in order to exact her revenge and she was right. Storm destroyed the gun and the pilots that powered it but didn't continue her lightening strikes into the crowd. Shakra would live to poison others another day.

Scott almost gave chase but there was just too much going on out here for him to go after just one of Jael's minions. There were plenty of others out here doing damage. In spite of their best efforts, the X-men were getting creamed. They were outclassed and outnumbered. If they didn't pull out of this soon, they were going to lose.

-------------------------------

The fight was raging on, loud and huge. Down below and deep inside the Complex, some of the first rumbles of battle could be heard. Those X-men not quite qualified to fight had been gathered underground near where the hanger bay was for the fighter jets not in regular service. The hanger bay was quite large, several of the planes sat parked and waiting.

When the alarm had sounded, Fallen had immediately lowered the Lucky Dragon down into the hanger and all those expected to report to the hanger had gathered inside her vessel. They were waiting there still, the evacuation order hadn't been given yet.

It was here that Seth was about to have his shining moment, only the young Siskan just didn't know it yet. He was sitting cross legged on the Lucky Dragon's galley room floor, his computer in his lap, surrounded by children, the young ones belonging to the brave fighters up above them. These children were not yet orphans, but judging from the racket upstairs, it was an ever growing possibility. Seth was hoping he could do his share to see that not happen.

Seth had once proposed an idea to Logan, one that Wolverine was much too busy to apply now that they had been taken by surprise. But Seth was a resourceful guy. There was more than one way to see something done. There were at least ten beta X-men here inside the ship and out, helping some of the back up X-men to guard the children and those too weak to fight. One of the guards nearest Seth happened to be Nightcrawler. Kurt, being a teleporter, wasn't a beta by any means, but he was the most familiar to the children. He was here to keep them calm.

Seth got up and approached Nightcrawler nervously. "I've got an idea. Can you 'port me up top?"

Kurt's answer was almost lost under a rumble from above. "Are you insane?"

"Let me explain."

Kurt was a patient fellow. He allowed Seth to give him his idea before dismissing it outright. It sounded like something from a cheap movie and Kurt's light German accent couldn't hide his disbelief as he asked, "You vant me to 'port us up top, up into one of those ships, so you can plant a virus inside one tiny computer and blow it up?"

"Well... yeah. Something like that. See, I've got the plans for how those Command ships were made. They all have stored Ristle canisters just like the Lucky Dragon does. Those canisters all have controllers on them to keep that energy stable. Any disruption to those stabilizers would cause them to explode."

"This sounds very dangerous, mon fruend. Not to be handled lightly."

Seth just laughed nervously. "That's why I was asking for you to help me."

Kurt actually found himself entertaining the idea. If they could take down those ships, it would deal Jael a serious blow. "What about Fallen?"

"She needs to stay with the kids. She can protect them better than I can. I'm no good in a fight."

Kurt nodded. "You don't vant her to know."

"She'll kill me!" Seth explained, covering his outcry with a trembling hand. He was afraid to do this thing he had proposed, but couldn't deny the logic of it. If he could help, he had no choice but to try. "Please, Kurt. I think we can save some lives."

Nightcrawler sighed. He had some priestly inclinations, but he was also an X-man. This was his fight, his people, and Seth's reputation for being a cool headed super brain was well known. Seth was not a reckless man, he meant what he said.

"Ya, okay. Ve sneak away. "

----------------------------------------------

Asher was wandering through clouds of dust and smoke. Explosions rocked the ground beneath his feet as thought the very Earth was dying its own death here among his teammates. It was hard for him to keep his feet, but he kept up his slow, plodding pace away from the nightmare raging behind him.

He hadn't made it downstairs to the shelter of the Complex, hadn't made it anywhere really -- he just drifted away behind the front lines of the fight, stumbling off towards the desert in a heartsick daze. All around him came the sounds of the dead and the dying. The X-men were losing, he knew it. He felt all those shines winking out like pinpricks in his soul. All of his new friends were dead or going to die and he had been unable to stop it.

His side was one huge agony where his skin had been torn and the smoke filled sky kept the sun from healing it. Not that Asher cared, all he wanted now was to die.

"Lord..." he begged, his arms wrapped around his soot covered torso. One elbow was rent and bleeding, dripping grey gel blood to the ground. His head was down, hardly looking as he shuffled one tortured step after the other. "Jesus... Takes me, please... Jus' gives me a sign that ya ain't left me behind... that ya still loves me... that I ain't lets ya down... please!"

As if in answer to his spoken prayer, Asher thumped to a halt as he hit something solid. Solid and fleshly. He looked up, seeking the face of the risen Christ, only to find himself looking into the eyes of a black man, one who was curiously happy to see him. This mysterious stranger grinned at him and said, "Well, hello there, son. Welcome to the party. You've had a busy day, I see."

Asher blinked in confusion. There hadn't been anyone there a second ago. This man was tall and brown, dressed in military clothing and carrying not a cross, but a large rainbow colored flag over one shoulder, one that carried the mark of the Royal House of Siska. It was a sight too bizarre for words. Asher shook his head as more tears streamed from his eyes. "Are – are you Jesus?"

The man burst into laughter. "Now, that's rich. I've been called many things, but Jesus? Sorry, son. What you've got here is plain old Butch Madison at your service. Why don't you take a load off? It's time the rest of us got to work anyhow." Asher blinked again as the air around him rippled and blurred and then he was standing in front of a whole host of men. Help had arrived. Butch contined to speak, amusement in his voice as he said, "Cheeree here will keep you company. Look after her for me will you? I'll be back for her shortly."

Asher broke into new sobs. He didn't know if he should be relieved or not. As far as he was concerned, these people had come here to die.

"Don't be afraid," Cheeree said, coming forward, her arms open. "My Master's gonna saves us all."

Asher spilled forward into them, his heart soaring at the sight of her. He had long sensed the presence of a Red out there somewhere and now here she was, real and alive in his arms. "You don't takes a Red to a fight," he scolded, but there was no one there to listen to him. Butch's men had moved on to join the fray.


	5. Chapter 5

(Five)

Kristalay was working quickly, foam flying from his mouth as he hacked his way through the crowd of Jael's men. From the moment his Master had released him, Kristalay had only one purpose – to find Jael and kill him.

Kristalay knew Famayalin had stayed close behind him, he could hear his brother in slavery growling and snarling only inches away, the blood flying about as much from his claws as they were from Kristalay's. The two of them were cutting quite the path of destruction.

Kristalay may have been aware that Famayalin was there, but the pair were not alone in their frenzy. Wolverine kept a close pace, keeping near but not too near. He wanted to get a good look at what Sabretooth had become. Wolverine was working but he was still amazed at the man's powerful transformation. Sabretooth had been mayhem on two feet before, but this... Kristalay was taking only seconds for each kill, oblivious to any injury he might receive. Kristalay had nothing to fear, his body regenerated claw after shattered claw, healed every bruise and cut with its strange new magic.

Kristalay moved with frightening speed. It took him no time to hack and slash his way right up to Jael's hovercraft. His rage had served him well, he hadn't been distracted by any other opponent, none of Jael's men had tried to shoot, blast, or fry him from a distance. They were all ignored as Kristalay rushed to fulfill his destiny.

Jael shrieked in terror when he saw Kristalay suddenly appear. He had lost the man in the crowd of fighting and had foolishly thought his men capable of holding the beast off. He raised his arms defensively, having nowhere to go.

Razel was quicker, he saw Kristalay coming, both him and his tiny lion twin, Famayalin, and shouted his surprise and anger. He grasped his Master tightly, needing to touch the man in order to teleport them both away. He had no sooner laid his hands on the his boss before both Kristalay and Famayalin made their own leap. Razel screamed in terror as he teleported not only him but the fearsome feral pair as well.

Razel had few defensive moves in a situation like this. The best he could hope for was that his passengers might fall off from the abuse of having been transported, not every one could stomach a teleportation jump, repeated ones even more so. Razel 'ported and 'ported and 'ported again, his tell tale flashes of light leaving a camera flash trail right back to the Cloud Jumper which was parked not far away.

Razel got lucky, he managed to get the little one to fall off not far from the Cloud Jumper's loading dock, but the big one, Kristalay, was much too powerful to come off that easily. Razel shouted with renewed strength at his minor victory and kept going. Maybe he could keep going and finish this after all. There was another bright flash of light and he was gone.

Now tumbled to the floor, Famayalin watched in vain as they blinked away, howling his rage. He felt cheated out of his revenge, once again Kristalay had stolen from him what was his. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it now unless Razel managed to somehow 'port back into his presence, but that was unlikely to happen.

Uncertain what to do next, Famayalin dusted off a bit and wandered through the vast loading bay looking for an exit, his bare hands and feet making no sound on the rough floor of the ship. He was a bit put out over being dumped, how very typical of Kristalay to just leave him. He was also sure that the Master might be disappointed in him, he hadn't accomplished the goal. At least Famayalin wasn't concerned for his own safety here on the ship, not just yet. While the earlier explosions gave him some pause, there was no one here to fight.

Well, there may have been no one to fight, but that didn't mean he wasn't alone. He was quite surprised to see a cage built in a secluded area, one that wasn't empty. He could see a body lying down in it, but when he sniffed the air, could smell nothing. That didn't mean he couldn't perceive the presence inside it in no other way, his Kundatesh addicted mind could sense that powerful energy, and wanted it.

He cautiously approached the cage, moving slowly on his hands and feet, ready for anything. Still he was startled when Simone, who had been lying still only moments before, came suddenly and violently to life. Simone flung himself at the invader, howling and snarling, his arms thrust through the bars in a desperate scramble for any kind of handhold on him. Famayalin jerked back out of range, startled but unafraid. He might be feral but he wasn't stupid. He could see quickly enough that Simone couldn't get out of the cage or get at him in any way.

Looking at the creature reacting violently in front of him, Famayalin could see the large white Mark blazing down his front. The Master had a Mark like that and Famayalin just knew he should be getting this Siskan away from here and away from Jael. Perhaps if he was able to bring this one to his Master, all would be forgiven for his failure with Jael. The question was how could he free such a violent and aggressive creature? He began to pace outside of the cage, working his poor Kundatesh altered brain to its limit to figure it out.

"Leaves him alone!" Star cried out, startling Famayalin again. She had been hiding behind some crates of supplies nearby, waiting to see what Famayalin would do. When she saw he wasn't leaving, she had come to her brother's defense.

Famayalin backed up with a hiss of warning, but then calmed a bit when he sensed that she, like the one in the cage, was also Siskan. How nice. He turned towards her, seeing this one at least could be reasoned with.

Star hesitated, but the man before her was quite strange. His shine spoke volumes about him. He had been significantly altered by Kundatesh, both mind and body, it was in his shine sparkling and bright. Why had someone made him this way? Why would that power be so misused? Of course only a Rogue could have done it, she knew this. "What do you want?" she asked, reserving judgement for now.

"Mrr!! Free you! Takes you to Master!"

"And who might that be? Yer Master?"

"M-Master Skye!"

"I don't knows that name," she replied, but looked once more at Famayalin's Kundatesh altered body and dared to ask, "What color is his Mark?"

"Mrr!! Yellow! Like sun!" Famayalin managed. This was the longest conversation he'd had in a while and it was clearly frustrating him. Human words made his throat hurt.

Star stepped back att the mention of Skye's yellow mark. She knew nothing of Skye, but was familiar with Mishnar, oh yes. Just as she had the other Rogues. He was a brute, but he was at least Siskan. It was time to choose. Deciding quickly to take this chance for freedom from Jael, she reached for the keys and started to unlock Simone's cage. She no sooner had the key in the lock when she heard new voices come.

She turned just in time to see Seth squeak in surprise as he and Nightcrawler came around the corner.

--------------------------

Seth and Nightcrawler had been successful in their mission of destruction. They had popped onto the Hellion only to find it mostly deserted. Most of the crew was out on the tarmac, fighting the X-men. Seth's schematics were perfect and Nightcrawler had teleported them right to where the large Ristle storage containers were placed. Like the Dragon, these containers were nothing more than large cylindrical canisters of Ristle gel, glowing with a full and heady charge.

Seth went to work immediately, plugging his laptop into the computer port and sending the virus he created. This virus would disrupt the containment controls on the Ristle cells, destabilizing them and causing them to explode. Kurt didn't stop him, he was a Christian and pacifistic by nature, the only thing that kept him going was the knowledge that these large vessels had been used to kill and were doing so again today. Plus, the ships had few remaining passengers, the body count would be low.

They teleported to another ship and finding the layout the same, repeated what they had done and ported away just in time to be treated to another ear splitting explosion. They were making good time. Jael had only one ship remaining, the Cloud Jumper.

Kurt teleported them there next, but they were in for a bit of surprise. They blinked in confusion and Seth checked his charts only to discover that this ship had been somewhat altered from its plans. Instead of being in the Ristle storage area, they were in a loading bay. They were about to leave when they heard a load racket. They followed the noise to find a strange sight.

A black bird man was in a cage, flapping around violently and trying to get at two people just outside the cage. One of those two people was clearly Siskan, the other some kind of lion. The lion man turned to face them, his fangs bared in an unfriendly grin. "Mrr!! Now what? What you want?!"

Nightcrawler moved in front of Seth defensively. He knew the Siskan didn't know how to fight. Somehow he had the idea that these folks here were not exactly enemies, but until he knew for sure, he would protect Seth at all costs. "We are here to destroy this ship. I hope you vill not stand in our vay."

"I won't stops you from destroying this ship," Star replied, doing her very best to be brave. "But I won't lets you harm my brother." She gestured to the snarling, hissing bird man in the cage.

Seth held up his hands in a gesture of peace, his eyes all over Star's Mark just as hers were all over his. He had many questions to ask of her, not the least of which was why she spoke just like his own brother, but they would just have to wait. "You have a deal. We're not here to hurt you, only to stop Jael."

Star didn't need to see more than Seth's Mark and his shine to trust him. He was obviously young and scared, no threat to her. That was good, all she cared about right now was time. "We have to gits out of here. Someone will come to stops you."

"Then we have to act fast," Seth replied, taking charge and looking over the cage.

Simone was awake and in terror. He howled in articulate rage and flung himself against the cage, making Star and the others step back. He was hysterical, his anger huge and loud in the cavernous space. He hadn't reacted to all this conversation, it was like he hadn't understood a word of it.

Kurt crossed himself quickly in awe of Simone's violence and looked around him, they had no time for this. "Seth, ve cannot tarry 'ere This one is too savage. Ve should just leave!"

"I won't leaves him!" Star insisted, tears hanging shiny in her eyes. She was just as frightened as Seth was, but she wouldn't leave Simone to die here alone. She had heard all the racket as the other ships had exploded. She heard what Seth had said and didn't think he and Nightcrawler would leave here without finishing their mission.

Seth raised a hand, seeing her concern. "We won't do anything to your friend. Let's just work this out, okay? Can you sedate him or anything?" Seth looked around him feebly for some kind of answer to this particular problem, but there was nothing around them but a big, empty hanger. "We can't take him anywhere like this."

Star looked around her as well, seeking something, anything in her panic. She saw a pile of leather straps and bungee cords. "Maybe we can tie him?"

Seth backed up a little. "I'm not going in there!"

"Mrr! Maybe 'Malin' help," the young lion offered, not wanting to give up his prize.

"Are you one of Jael's?" Seth asked, suspicious of this feral stranger.

"Mrr! No! Skye Master!"

Seth had no idea what that meant, only that it was good enough for him. "Can you calm him down?" he asked, gesturing to Simone.

"Mrrr!" Famayalin answered with a sly grin. "Think so, yes."

Kurt wasn't that stupid. "You can do this vit'out hurting him?"

Famayalin shook his head. "Mrr!! No kills. Sleepy with fists!" he suggested raising his big clawed hands and simulating a punch. "Mrr! Not hard! Just make sleep!"

Kurt took a step back in refusal, but Star only lowered her eyes. "It's the only option we haves cuz we ain't gots much time. It wuz how they calmed him before." Many times she'd seen Simone beaten down. It was a way to control him, yes, though she did not approve. The fighting outside, however, was erasing their options too quickly for much else.

"I don't think we have a choice. We have to leave," Seth said, unable to hide his sadness at the thought of Simone's pain.

Kurt nodded, knowing what needed to be done. He gestured to Famayalin and they 'ported inside the cage. Famayalin's quick wits paid off and he subdued Simone quickly, giving him a quick, smarting blow to the head. His military training was still in good shape, he took Simone down faster and with less cruelty than Jael's men would have. Simone crumpled with a groan and Star unlocked the cage. They then tied him up and prepared to leave.

Nightcrawler was about to 'port them away but just then Seth called for him to wait.

"Ve have no time!"

"We have time enough for this."

Before Kurt could sputter another protest, Seth walked briskly towards the back of the room. His quick eyes had spotted Jael's modification – the Ristle storage tanks had been moved to accommodate Simone's large cage and Seth had just now seen where they had been relocated. He had his computer out from his backpack and ready, typing quickly and uploading his little code virus into the containers' control panel. It didn't take long and then they were off in a cloud of purple smoke. This ship was as good as toast, programmed to explode in a matter of minutes.

----------------------------

Other than the destruction of Jael's big Command ships, the fight was not going well. Charles Xavier was a powerful telepath and as such he was very much in tune with what was going on on his runway. The man may have been physically crippled but he was not unable to do his own part in this spectacular battle. He was reaching out with his mind, overseeing the fight and offering telepathic advice to those topside. He was a help but wished he could do more. He knew they were outnumbered and overrun.

As an omega telepath, he would be hard to defeat one on one so Jael made sure he had four of his own powerful telepaths devoted solely to keep Xavier's prodigious brain from ruining his plans. Charles had to admit to being secretly flattered in spite of his frustrations – most folks underestimated him and didn't prepare enough. Jael hadn't done so.

Charles was able to mentally stop some of Jael's lesser men, sending them frightful visions so they ran off screaming into the desert. Even now Charles refused to use lethal means to stop them though he knew that his X-men had already moved well past that line in their own defense. He would neither criticize or punish them for it. He understood just how bad it was out there.

The Professor was located deep underground where Fallen had gathered near the Lucky Dragon. The most vulnerable of mutants were there – the children and the old, the ones too weak to fight. They had collected inside her ship for safety, but it wasn't enough to keep them from hearing the loudest of explosions from outside. Some of the children had begun crying in fright when Jael's big Command ships met their fates from Seth's powerful code programs.

Fallen was quick to soothe the kids and the old alike and had plenty of supplies to keep the youngest entertained as much as possible to alleviate their fears. She had done a good job of organizing, well enough that she was just now realizing that she was missing a certain Siskan very dear to her heart.

She came to where the Professor was sitting, trying not to disturb him. He was busy but also knew she was getting very upset. "I am sorry, Fallen," he said. "Seth is no longer here."

She was at first startled that he had known what she was ready to ask, but that was soon displaced by a squint of anger. "What do you mean he isn't here?"

"I'm afraid he managed to convince Nightcrawler that the two of them could be of some use topside."

"What? Is he high?" she exclaimed, fisting her hands. She was gearing into some sort of panic and already began to abandon her post to go and find him, but halted when the Professor called to her.

"Fallen, it's okay. He and Nightcrawler are already on their way back and yes, they were quite successful. We have much to thank them for. They are fine, so please, don't worry. They've even brought us a few guests."

Fallen relented and came back to him but she was far from mollified. When Seth returned, they were going to have a little talk.

Charles was about to offer her some more words of comfort – Seth had been a major help after all – but then he realized that they were no longer alone. Someone had joined the fight topside. Someone who had brought his own army. The X-men, it seemed, had an ally they'd had no idea existed. It was a most welcome surprise.

----------------------------------------

Remy had rejoined the fight, but now a few minutes later, he was essentially done. He was slumped up against the set of rails for the guard shack he and Neal had come up to protect. Gambit had been knocked around some more, holding his own, but the sight of all of his compatriots dying around him had pretty much fizzled out whatever new resolve he'd had. He had only returned to the fight for a few minutes when he saw three of his former students vaporized before his very eyes. They were just kids, not even twenty years old yet. No amount of X-man training could have prepared him for the sight. He had collapsed, unable to take any more. Neal was covering him, firing plasma blasts off in every direction and all the exhausted thief could do was watch in an ever increasing glaze of horror.

Jael had come with more than a few energy guns and hadn't been afraid to use them. Remy sat there watching as friend after friend was melted down to slag before his eyes just as Jason had been. They were going to lose. All of his sacrifices had been in vain. Kimble, Asher, Aiden, Seth. All would belong to Jael now to do with as he pleased.

Remy closed his eyes and prayed for an end to all of this. In spite of the clouds of smoke and soot that obscured his vision, he'd seen more than enough. He couldn't articulate his thoughts exactly, he just groaned out his internal agony to what he hoped was still a benevolent God. All those he had loved were going to die. His wife, his unborn children. Angel was gone, Kimble and Aiden were in some sort of mess he couldn't even define. He wished only for death, for an escape from this horrible pain.

Oddly enough, there was an answer to his prayer. There was a bright flash of light and new voices, prompting him to open his eyes. He was now surrounded by a whole group of people he didn't know, these were no X-men. Neal surged forward to Remy's defense but he was flanked by several power producers even more powerful than he was himself. "Stand down, little fella," one of them said to Neal, seeing his distress. "You and us, we're on the same side."

Neal sputtered something in protest but found himself towed along with this new group of rabble rousers as they fanned out into the smoke to join the fray. When Neal saw them begin to fry as many of Jael's men as he would have done himself, he went a little more easily. They were doing some clean up work as well, incinerating the bodies of the dead as they walked by and reducing them to ash. Cleaning up the mess as it were, and leaving behind only bloody smears on the ground. Neal looked back at Remy and the thief gave him a nod and a short wave of dismissal. Friend or foe, it was too late to stop them now.

A black man, the leader of this new group, stayed behind to keep Gambit company. Gambit had stayed as he was, too wasted to even rise from his slump against the rails. The leader reached down to brush Remy's shoulder with a rough, misshapen hand. "Rest easy now, son. Cheeree sends her regards, Gifted One."

Remy was speechless. Butch Madison, he knew that face now that he was seeing it up close. They had never actually met but Madison's face was on all the Blue 26 sheets, SHIELD's Most Wanted. This enemy of the American state was walking away from him now, looking back at him with a playful grin. He was dressed in black leather, but carried over his shoulder a huge rainbow flag. Some here might have guessed it incorrectly as the rainbow flag of Gay Pride, but for this thief in the know, there was no mistaking the royal flag of Siska. This day couldn't be any more bizzare.

Butch stopped a few feet away from where Gambit lay in a broken sprawl, standing with all the ease of a Sunday stroll, as if the battle all around him couldn't touch him. He was barking orders into a headset he wore and his people were active all around him, driving back Jael's men with pathetic ease. Butch collected omegas, energy producers and telekinetics in general. These folks were top liners, far more powerful than most of the X-men, mostly because Butch paid by profit where Charles Xavier was a pro-bono peacekeeping organization. Greed was the primary motivator of these guys and they were earning their pay well today.

It was a bloodbath in reversal unfolding before Remy now. Bolts of electricity and plasma flew through the air, whole groups of Jael's men burst into furious flames, creating a sickening stench. Some of Butch's crew Gambit recognized, more than a few of these men and women accompanied their leader's face on the Blue 26 sheets as terrorists. But in the back, Remy thought he saw a familiar face, Kimble's former tormentor Leon. The last time Gambit had seen him, the young man had been working for the Freedom Kings, a group that had possession of Kimble for a time. It was Leon who had melted Kimble with a plasma burst and killed his third star forever. Gambit had thought Leon was long gone, but here now he was, in the service of a terrorist more powerful than his last owner had been.

The battle wasn't restricted to the ground. Butch Madison had both pyrokinetics and telekinetics up in the air, adding to the madness. Everything was smoke, noise and death. Bodies were falling from the sky like rain. Butch was unfazed, he was conducting his people like an orchestra, arranging his pieces and watching the damage done. "Jake and Thomas, bring your teams to the left, cover the main building if you would. Leena and Mary, maintain your cloaks over this whole field, let's keep SHIELD out of here as long as we can. Paul and Ben, bring your teams to the right and cover whatever stupid thing these X guys are building in that fenced off corner. Looks important. Kaitlin, I want Jael's ships shut down and helpless."

Remy had to admire the man's brass, he was cool and collected. Butch was fully in control, unshaken except for the sudden eruption of flames coming from one of Jael's ships. There was a boom and another loud explosion. Butch was instantly furious and screaming into his headset. "Kaitlin! That was too soon, our people were still in there!"

There was a garbled response and Butch turned to look back at Remy. He covered the mouthpiece and said, "You people are more clever than I thought. Clever, but ultimately very stupid."

Gambit had no idea what Butch was talking about and Butch could see it in his eyes. The answer came in Butch's next order. "Kaitlin, get Xavier's idiots out of those ships before they blow themselves to bits. Try and salvage at least one of the ships, if you please. Might make a nice RV."

"What you goan' do wit' it, eh? Blow up some t'ird world country jus' to increase yo' property values?" Remy found himself answering to the greedy gleam in Butch's eyes. He was grateful for the obvious save, his prayer answered, but was left to acknowledge that God had a strange sense of humor. Their savior might actually have been worse than Jael himself.

Butch laughed, not the least bit offended by Gambit's remark. He came to where Remy sat and crouched down. "That's a funny question coming from you. Tell me, what did Sinister pay you to murder those Morlocks anyway?"

Remy blanched, at least as much as his already pale face would allow. He hadn't expected to be recognized, never mind have that old mess dredged up and thrown back at him from out of nowhere like that. "It wasn't like dat. Sinister lie to me."

Butch clearly didn't believe. "If you say so, thief. Small consolation to those who lived below, but if it makes you feel any better, I have more than a few Morlocks that you guys missed working for me now. I'll be sure to send them your regards."

"Fuck you!" Remy snarled and jerked away, as graceless in his movements as he had been in his reply. He felt a sharp stabbing pain rip through his chest, the beginnings of a panic attack, something he hadn't felt in a long time. He didn't get them often anymore, but when he did, it was almost always in association to his past, to his horrible crime. He was vulnerable here, exposed. The thought of actually seeing a real Morlock again only increased the pain. They had been widely scattered after the Massacre and he'd never actually seen one since, only heard rumors of a survivor now and again.

Butch turned away, his silhouette blotting out smoke and burning things. "And to think I once wanted to recruit you. It's just as well Sinister neutered you. What a waste." Butch turned away and walked off, his disregard perhaps the biggest insult of all. He followed the diminishing noise and confusion, his men were mopping up nicely and this would soon be over.

Remy lay in a slumped heap, still crumpled and useless here against the railings. He didn't fully understand what Butch had meant by Sinister neutering him, he could only guess it was a reference to whatever Sinister had done to reduce his energy producing powers. Somehow, as bright as Butch was, it hadn't occurred to the leader of the Outkasts, a man who prized power above all else, that that reduction of Remy's power had indeed been the price Sinister had paid. Remy had been out of control and asked the only person he knew was capable of helping him for assistance. It had been a mistake. At that moment, Gambit wished Sinister had neutered his empathy as well, Butch's disdain was a finishing blow to an already horrific day.


	6. Chapter 6

(Six)

Gambit wasn't the only one having a really bad day, Razel wasn't doing so well either. He was a good teleporter, but 'porting multiple targets again and again was no easy thing. His load had been lightened somewhat by Famayalin's dropping off, but he was still moving himself and Jael plus the voracious Kristalay who refused to give way. Razel had teleported quite far from where they had originally started and managed two more jumps before exhaustion finally caught up with him.

Kristalay was huge and howling, more than the poor teleporter could handle. Razel took them onto the Cloud Jumper' where Jael's personal transports were held and finally collapsed, gasping onto the hard metal floor. He knew there would be a large open space here with room to move about. Kristalay was dangerous, but never more so than in close quarters. Razel was hoping that here there was a chance he and Jael could make a run for it into one of the shuttles and flee.

They would never get the opportunity. The moment they stopped moving, Kristalay lunged at Razel, leaving Jael for later, and slashed his throat with his huge clawed hands. Kristalay didn't want Jael to be able to 'port away again and so took Razel out of the equation. Razel gave a choked, gurgled scream as he felt his neck rip open. In a useless bid to staunch the gaping wound, he released his precious Master just as Kristalay wanted.

Jael tried to run for it. He knew Razel was down and wasted no time in abandoning his Second to his fate. He fled, racing towards one of the shuttle crafts. It was a wasted effort, Kristalay was done fooling around and saw only his objective. He had come here to punish and punish he would. He wasn't here to play cat and mouse and wasted no time. The man was clever so he was, and resourceful in a pinch. He slashed at Razel's throat once more, callously severing his head before the guy was even fully dead. He then used poor Razel's head like a ball and whipped it at Jael's feet, tripping him easily.

Jael's feet tangled on the bloody, slippery missile and he fell to the floor with a startled shout. Kristalay was on him in seconds, pinning Jael to the floor with his superior weight and physical strength, his breath reeking of death. His fangs were long and bloodied, his clawed hands sticky with blood but still thirsted for more.

Jael panicked now that it had come to it and crossed his arms over his throat, hoping the Shalayesk armor would somehow spring to life and protect him. It shimmered and hummed, but sprouted no weapons or did anything to repel the beast that lay upon him.

"Well, looky here. If it ain't the cowardly lion," Kristalay teased triumphantly, amused by Jael's lack of dignity. It was a matter of sheer luck the man hadn't peed himself. Jael stank of fear, a scent that only drove Kristalay's need to kill even faster.

"You should be dead!" Jael howled in complaint as if his words could make it so. He had no logical explanation for what he was now seeing. Not only was Sabretooth still alive, he was more mutated than before, as though the man had made a deal with the Devil himself to regain his powers. Perhaps he had.

"Guess life had other plans for you and me," the man formerly known as Sabretooth growled with his toothy smile. "It might take a while, but the ones who hurt me always pay. **_Always._**"

"I'm a rich man! You know I am!" Jael blurted out in a last bid to halt his impending death. "I'll pay you whatever you want!"

Kristalay just chuckled. "Some things money can't buy. Like revenge fer instance. And this? No money is gonna be worth more than the look on yer face when I see ya die, screamin' like the pansy ass you are!"

Kristalay would have loved to take his time and give Jael the long, agonized death he deserved, but he knew it would be much too risky. He had seen the other Command ships blow up and had no desire to go up in smoke himself. He raised his claws once more and struck. Jael had protected his throat but at the cost of exposing his belly, the Shalayesk armor offering no protection against that lion's rage. Kristalay's claws tore open Jael's stomach, eviscerating him in one long stroke. Jael screamed and lowered his harms reflexively, just as Kristalay expected. The moment his neck was exposed, Kristalay slashed at him again, this time the stroke a fatal one. Blood spurted up from Jael's throat in a torrent, garbling what Kristalay triumphantly hoped were Jael's last words.

Through all he had endured at Skye's tortuous hands, Kristalay had seen this moment over and over in his mind, and though he knew he had little time left, didn't deny himself one simple pleasure -- he lowered his head and drank deeply, slaking his thirst on Jael's blood, still hot and pumping from the jugular. It was warm, salty sweet. He shuddered from the pleasure of it, the monster in him pleasured more fully than by any Kundatesh induced orgasm. He then stood, wiping his chin, and watched in triumph as Jael slowly died.

The man tried to crawl away but was losing fluids quickly. Kristalay simply followed like the great big menacing cat he was, grinning all the while as he purred, "See who's crawlin' now, punk?"

Jael could go no further. Even as his life faded away, he still couldn't believe it had turned out like this. He had come here with so much, there was no way he should have lost. He had brought his army, the depowering gun, and the Shalayesk armor. In his arrogance, he hadn't counted on Siskans that were more clever than he had been himself.

Kristalay was quite pleased with himself, but he wasn't stupid. He had no more time. He slashed again at Jael, wanting proof of his kill, and removed Jael's large lion's head. If he had known more about the Game, he might have tried to claim the Shalayesk armor for himself, but in his current feral state, had been more than satisfied by Jael's blood. He took his prize, leaving the body behind, and then headed for the nearest exit.

Luckily he didn't have to go far, the doors were clearly marked and he was back outside onto the tarmac. He barely had time to start running when he heard the first explosion go off deep inside the Cloud Jumper and he took off, heading through the smoke to where he thought the main building of the Complex might be.

----------------------------

Beast might not have had a lot of patients but he was still busy. He had his triage area set up and quickly wheeled the gurney with Aiden and Kimble on it down the hall. He had tried to separate them after Gambit had handed them over but Aiden still held Kimble fast. The Dreamer wasn't ready to let his lover go just yet.

Henry had the hallway lined with gurneys on both sides, wanting all of the wounded able to be moved out quickly if they were forced to evacuate. The beds were starting to fill somewhat but not to his liking. Not that he wanted anyone hurt, but he was smart enough to know that only the living were going to make it down here on their own. It was growing quieter outside and still too few had come down. Henry didn't know if the growing quiet was good or bad. He had a plan in place to send nurses up topside, and had allowed some of the more vocal volunteers, but was hesitant about sending his full crew. Who knew how ugly it was up there and he needed all the help he could get down here.

He wheeled his current cargo down the hall and with Maylee's help was able to gently separate the pair onto their own gurneys. Kimble made no sound as he was moved but Henry could see he was breathing, a good sign. Aiden grumbled in protest as Kimble's body was taken from him, his eyes fluttering open for a moment.

Beast was right there, flashing a light into his eyes. "Are you okay? Are you in any pain?"

Aiden's skin was hot and slick with gel sweat as if he burned with fever. A quick glance over showed that a fever wasn't the only thing Aiden had acquired from his adventure outside -- his Mark was changing, something startling. It was blurring right before Henry's eyes, changing from its usual pale blue to a rich golden yellow. Where Skye's Mark had been a sunny color, this was more pure, a deep honey and somehow sparkly and fascinating. Aiden however, could have cared less about his Mark, if he even knew it had changed at all. He coughed as Henry tried to assess him, spitting up more golden liquid, and turned away from the light, raising a hand to block his eyes. "Szleep...muszt szleep... Keemble?"

"He's here. He looks a little burnt but otherwise okay. It's you I am concerned about. What happened up there?"

"Szleep..." was all Henry got in reply. Aiden had stayed awake long enough to see that Kimble was in fact nearby. His preternatural eyes could see what Henry's could not – Kimble's shine was sparkly bright and strong. Kimble was okay, just in need of a long rest. This was something he sorely needed himself and his already small and sleepy eyes closed once more.

It was less than Beast had wanted, he still wasn't sure what had happened, but Aiden had to be functional to even be able to talk so he would have to be happy with that for now. It looked like both Kimble and Aiden would be fine. He touched the golden liquid Aiden had spat up, but like all things the Siskans sicked up, it shimmered brightly and vaporized, leaving no clue of what it was. That would have to wait until later when Aiden could be examined properly.

Now that the Siskans had been secured, Beast looked back to where he had left Remy slumped in the hall but could already see the thief was gone. He was disappointed but not surprised. The X-men trained long and hard and they were fiercely loyal to one another. They wouldn't quit until they dropped and Remy was no exception.

He was about to return to Aiden when he heard the door slam, indicating more people coming down from outside. Henry was glad to hear it though there was always the chance it wasn't from friendlies. He need not have worried, Seth and Nightcrawler were coming along the hallway now with some guests.

Beast wasn't sure what surprised him more, the bloodied young Famayalin coming on his hands and feet or the pale young girl carrying a naked, winged black man in her arms and against her like a child. The man was fully grown and not the least bit small, betraying her enhanced strength. His hands were tied and his large feathered wings folded and strapped tightly around him, making him seem more wounded than dangerous. The girl had paused momentarily mid stride the moment her eyes saw Henry, her expression first one of awe and wonder, something of a surprise. It was a sad fact that most folks were a bit frightened by him when they first met, yet she was anything but afraid. She didn't speak but gripped the man she was holding a bit more tightly, an act of possession.

"Well, this should be a tale worth hearing," Beast joked to Seth in greeting.

"You have no idea," Seth replied, his eyes a little weary from travel and stress. He had never been more brave than he had been today and he was exhausted. He wanted his Mistress.

"And who have we here?" Beast inquired in regard to Seth's guests, happy for the distraction from the noise upstairs.

"Sorry to be rude, Herr Beast, but the introductions vill have to vait," Nightcrawler said quickly, "Ve need a holding cell right avay. The black one is too savage to be free. He is violent and will vake soon."

Henry wasn't the least bit offended, but he was practical. "We might still have to evacuate. Confining him to a cell will make that more difficult if we must leave in a hurry."

"Ve come to that problem ven ve have to, eh?"

"One of Logan's Security stations is right down the hall."

"Lead the vay."

Henry walked the group down towards the Security station, his mind full of questions. He was quick to note that Star, as tiny as she was, had some kind of Mark on her chest. He got an even better look at it when they got to the Security station and Simone was untied and laid to rest in one the holding cells. She was clearly Siskan and a Rogue. He had learned that much from Gambit and Asher as well.

Beast turned to her, offering her his hand, "Hello and welcome."

Star was quiet and clearly a little intimidated, but not by his size or his appearance. She couldn't take her eyes off of him. She took his hand without fear and then he felt it, a small little jolt as she used her power to "read" him. Aiden had done that when they had been formally introduced and Henry wasn't that surprised by it, but she hadn't held back as Aiden had. He felt himself flush a bit under all of that fur.

She said nothing more but he saw a hint of a smile grace her lips and it changed the look of her face. If he had thought she was beautiful before she was even more so now. If it was a spell she had cast on him, she had done it rather easily.

Henry opened his mouth to say something else, but just then Simone made a noise. He was indeed waking as fast as Nightcrawler had predicted. He let slip a low deep growl as his eyes fluttered slowly open. It was the only warning they would get. Not even a second later and he was on his feet and at the bars, snarling and hissing as he snatched out with his hands, ready to rip and tear.

"Good Lord!" Henry exclaimed in shock and surprise, automatically pulling Star back and away out of harm's way.

"He vas like that back where ve found him," Nightcrawler explained as the group backed away. "Jael kept him in a cage. Now ve see why."

"Is he always like this?" Beast asked Star.

She nodded even as she cowered and moved so that Henry's larger body blocked Simone's view of her. It wasn't so much for her own protection than that she had known for a while now that the sight of her only made Simone worse.

"Then perhaps we should give him some space," Beast suggested, moving them further down the line of cells. "Someone should stay close by though, in case he needs something. At least until Remy can have a look at him."

"I'll stay," Seth offered. He couldn't help but be fascinated by Simone just as he had been by Aiden and Babette. Here was another Siskan, a creature just like himself, and one that he had never met. He was building a family without even realizing it. "Just, if Fallen calls, can you tell her where I am? She's probably upset already."

Beast squinted at him. "She didn't know you left?"

"She wouldn't have let me go," Seth started to explain, but just then something exploded loud and heavy from just above them. The whole building around them shook and some dust sifted down from the ceiling. Beast had no doubt that the building would hold, he'd had a big hand in designing the place, but that didn't mean the others were so confident.

Star squealed in terror and jerked out of Henry's grasp, trying to make a run for the nearest exit, but he caught her arm, being careful of his claws. It had never once left his mind that she was still naked. How could he? She was so beautiful. "It's okay. We won't let anything or anyone hurt you."

Star relaxed a little at that, but her eyes held no trust. It was more the resignation of one who had changed hands before. She had accepted the sad fact that she was too valuable to be killed off lightly, but her happiness was never assured. Yeah, she was curious about Beast and it hadn't escaped her notice that the others here seemed to defer a bit to his authority as though he was in a position of power, but there was no guarantee that he was going to be her next owner. As far as she was concerned she was now in a state of limbo, open to the next one to claim her for himself.

Simone hadn't like the sound of the explosion himself and flew into a renewed fit of rage, screaming now at the top of what passed for his lungs and smashing into the bars of his holding cell. His fits were always impressive to those who were witnessing them for the first time, and now was no exception. Henry moved the group down the hall, his doctor's sharp mind already sifting through his options. "Is there any way he'll drink a tonic to make him sleep?" he asked Star, though he could already guess the answer.

"No, he just needs the quiet. We should just leaves him alone."

Beast startled a bit at the sound of her voice. It was light and sweet and music to her ears, but it was Kimble's accent all over again. It confirmed his guess that she was a Rogue and made her all the more interesting. "Then that is what we shall do. Hopefully the fighting will calm down soon and all of this will be soon be over. Let's at least get you some clothes and a blanket."

"I vill stay vit Seth," Kurt offered, seeing that Star wasn't the only one scared. Seth was loyal and would stay his post, but he would be better off with some company.

"That's a good idea. I'll let Fallen know where you are."

Henry brought Star back to the row of waiting gurneys and sat her down on one near the end. He found some clean scrubs and a blanket to wrap around her. He would have loved to stay and chat some more, but his wish had finally been granted, people were starting to trickle down from above, many of them wounded and dirty, but at least they were alive. He would be busy for a while.

------------------------------

There comes a time in everyone's life when they have an "oh shit" moment. When they know they are totally screwed and there will be no dramatic rescue. It began to dawn on Marcus that he might be having an "oh shit" moment the second he saw Kristalay and Famayalin coming for Jael. Jael's winged third in command had been rudely shoved aside and missed out on Razel's teleportation. Though that might have been a good thing – it at least spared Marcus from being mauled to death.

Marcus hit the ground and dusted off, grumbling his complaints. He had no sooner looked up when the first of the Command ships exploded into its premature death and knocked him back on his ass. It was a sign from God, he might have rationalized later. A sign that Jael's little hostile takeover was not going to go as planned.

He scrambled to his feet once more and began screaming orders into his headset, trying to contain the hemorrhaging but when the second Command ship blew, he knew it was over. Even if they won, they weren't going to be flying out of here. Jael's army was too big to fit onto the one single ship remaining like that.

The problem of having an oversized army began rectifying itself not long after and not in a good way. There were new shouts and explosions on the field and then Marcus could only stand in numb shock and horror as a new group of people arrived, seemingly out of nowhere, and made themselves quite clear they were not on his side. He had no idea who these guys were, but they were powerful energy producers and were making their way through the crowd with pathetic ease, melting or incinerating anything in their path that was not wearing a black uniform.

The mob of fighters that had been engaged on the tarmac broke like lemmings, everyone fleeing without a thought or care. It was obvious to anyone that neither side knew who the newcomers were, the X-men were just as terrified as Jael's people even though they were not being attacked. It was complete bedlam and confusion.

Shakra may have eluded Storm's lightning bolts, but she didn't escape a wide sweeping arc of orange energy that incinerated her and some others into smoking piles of ash. It was then that Marcus began to realize that he was now experiencing not only an "oh shit" moment, but that it might be the final "oh shit" moment of his life if he didn't get his winged ass moving and out of the line of fire.

All dignity lost, he broke and ran just like the others. He was at least smart enough not to try and make it to the Cloud Jumper -- if the other ships were gone, that one would soon be as well. He raised his telekinetic shields as best he could and vaulted into the air, heading for the rust colored dunes that surrounded the Complex, hoping to find cover in the smoke and thick thunderclouds that had formed above.

It was a wise choice though still risky. Butch wasn't so stupid as to leave his skies unprotected. Marcus found himself flanked by mules in the clouds, flyers carrying energy producers, just as Butch had used to bring Jael to this battlefield in the first place. Marcus dodged and weaved, keeping his head down and didn't engage anyone that might have crossed his path. He was fortunate that the skies were dark enough to hide him. By simply fleeing and not trying to fight, he was then able to head to the hills and higher ground. He spotted a small cave and took shelter, hoping to get passed by. He was lucky, there was more aggressive prey out there for the hunters and he was easily overlooked.

Marcus wasn't going to stand still even though he had found shelter. He was a cautious fellow and always had a small safety kit with his gear. He took out and broke a phosphorus stick for some light before venturing further into the cave, hoping there might be an exit on the other side. He passed a bloody stain on the floor – he didn't want to know about that! – and kept going. The cave widened as he went along, even opening out a bit into a roomy chamber that had strange sparkly crystal spikes sticking out of the walls -- more weirdness he didn't even want to know about.

Before long, he saw dim natural light ahead and made for it. He was lucky, this cave did have two entrances and this second one took him well beyond the fighting. He came out and dared to fly up to the top of the peak he was on, looking back at the Complex. He was now quite some distance away but not so far that he couldn't see the smoke and the burning. The large stormy clouds overhead were threatening to break any moment, those fires would not be burning for long. It didn't look as though many of his compatriots survived, he was alone up here and at this distance.

His future was now uncertain, he had lived and worked for Jael for so long he had no idea where he was going to go. One thing was certain, he could never appeal to Xavier for mercy, his face was on those Blue 26 sheets right next to Butch's people. He was on his own. He decided not to push his luck with the hunters and kept going, out into the desert and to safety. If he survived, he would do his best to see his Master avenged.

------------------------------

Logan was a little pissed. He had wanted to follow Kristalay and Famayalin's pursuit of Jael, but Razel's teleportation had put that idea to a quick end. Not that Wolverine didn't have anything left to do, he was still moving through the crowd, finishing Jael's men as much as he could, pushing them back and away from the stairwells that led below. Even so, he knew they weren't going to make it. Jael had too many men and the X-men were losing numbers quickly.

He was given some glimmers of hope. One by one and only a few minutes apart, Jael's big Command ships exploded into smoke and flame. He hadn't been in on that particular plan, but hadn't forgotten Seth's suggestions for how that might be accomplished. Logan hoped that it had been Seth that had managed to see his plan carried out.

The sight of the Command ships blowing up re-energized some off the beleaguered X-men and those that remained fought more fiercely. They might lose this fight due to their diminishing numbers, but it wasn't going to be from lack of trying.

It was only moments after the last Command ship blew that Wolverine heard new voices and saw another group of people moving on the scene. They were walking in a solid line and in a great organized pack, firing at Jael's men and cleaning up the dead, reducing them to ash. It might have been cloudy and smoky here on the ground, but it didn't keep him from recognizing some of Butch's crew just as Remy had. They were all energy producers and killers, wanted men. The only thing that gave him hope then was the fact that they only went after Jael's men and not anyone in a black uniform.

He dared to approach one on the end and called out through the smoke, "What the hell is going on? Who are you people?"

The man just smiled at him. He was huge, green, and smelled of burnt plastic, a plasma producer. "I'm Jonsey and we're the Outkasts, come to save your sorry asses."

Logan just squinted in anger. It was beginning to dawn on him who might have instigated the day's festivities. The mules who had first arrived with Jael in tow had not been X-men. "No one invited you!"

The man winked at him and smiled his devilish grin. "Don't be so sure about that."

Logan was ready to continue the conversation but the man left him, keeping his place in the line and leaving Wolverine behind. The crowd of Outkasts was growing in number – those X-men who recognized that the cavalry had come were joining them in mopping up the last of Jael's men. Jael's crew had been seriously decimated, Wolverine doubted there were going to be many survivors. Of course it didn't escape his notice that the black Xavier uniforms were now few and far between themselves. Did the X-men survive Jael's attack only to be conquered by the Outkasts? The X-men were in no position to defeat them, not now.

The bulk of the crowd passed him and Logan grumbled, turning away from them and back the way he had come. Always and forever on duty, Logan sent out an urgent thought to the Professor. _Chuck? You guys all right down there?_

The reply was a quick buzz of unspoken irritation at the nickname, but then some words of comfort as well. _Yes, we are all fine down here. The children and the ones less able to fight were unharmed._

_And up here? How bad is it? I can't tell with the smoke._

_It's bad, Logan, I won't lie to you. We are down to less than twenty percent of our numbers._

Logan shuddered, he couldn't help it. He did his best to shove his pain aside, he would deal with that later. _What about these new guys, is that trouble? They said they were invited, is that your doing?_

_No, I most certainly did not invite them. I don't know for sure if they are trouble for us, but they are only attacking Jael's men and assisting with our own. SHIELD is not yet on the way and I think they may have had something to do with that. Let's count them as allies, but only for now. _

_Copy that,_ Logan replied and shut down communications on his end for the moment. He wanted a look around and to check for survivors. There didn't seem to be too many. He did see some dim figures shuffling through the crowd, stumbling toward the downstairs doors – the walking wounded. One of them came closer and he realized this was no wounded man or a even man at all for that matter.

"You seen m' lions?" Skye asked casually, looking anything but worried. He was dusty with ash but unscathed. He was back in his regular skin, his long red hair drifting in the fire generated wind and still somehow elegantly beautiful as only a Siskan could be in a mess like this. He hadn't teleported away as Logan might have thought, but had simply remained cloaked and kept out of the way as much as possible. Now that things were winding down, he was ready to reclaim his property.

"What makes ya think they're still alive, ya sick fuck?"

Skye's smile widened just a bit as if the answer to that should have been obvious. "Cuz I dreamed they would be."

Logan opened his mouth to reply but stopped when he saw someone else coming, a bulky shape he couldn't help but recognize. It was Kristalay, the monster formerly known as Sabretooth, striding through the smoke with ease and carrying something in one hand. As Kristalay came closer and became more visible, Logan smelled the blood from Jael's severed head before his eyes confirmed what he already knew. He had been close enough once to Jael to never forget his scent or that face, Dognan or not. Logan was quite pleased. As bad as the X-men had been reduced, Jael's defeat had been total, not just the loss of his army. Jael would never terrorize anyone ever again.

"Kristalay, m' sweets. I knews you would do me proud," Skye purred, his tone thick with praise and an odd sort of love. "Gives that ta me."

Kristalay came close to his Master and crouched down submissively in a well practiced motion, his head to Skye's knee. Skye had trained him to do this well and he had done it without thinking. Skye tapped his shoulder and Kristalay looked up. There was a moment of defiant anger in his eyes but then Skye raised a hand and stroked it lovingly through Kristalay's blood spattered hair, sparkling Morrowhiem drifting off his fingers. Kristalay shuddered slightly and his eyes fluttered with pleasure at it, the defiance vanishing as if it had never had been. He gave no argument as he handed Jael's bloody head into Skye's hands, a prize he might have kept for himself.

Wolverine shook his head with ironic amusement at the sight. He hadn't forgotten that first look of defiance and he had no doubt that Kristalay would break free from whatever hold Skye had on him eventually. It wasn't in Sabretooth's nature to be a captive to anyone for long.

Skye admired his prize, not in the least bit horrified to be touching the bloody remains. He smiled and said, "I should be showin' this to m' brothers and sisters. They needs ta knows they don't ever haves to be afraid no mores. We won the Game, it's over."

It took a minute for Logan to realize that Skye was referring to his Siskan kin. It rankled a t bit, the idea that Skye would think that the Siskans had done this on their own without any kind of outside help, but selflessness was not a trait Logan associated with Siskans anyhow. It didn't mean he couldn't be accommodating when it suited his purpose. He acted on Skye's thought quickly, gesturing grandly towards a downstairs stairwell. "The rest of the Siskans are probably downstairs. This way," he offered, happy to get Skye underground and that much closer to a holding cell. He wasn't going to pass up on an opportunity to cage this lunatic.

Skye nodded and followed easily enough, Kristalay following his Master without another word. They made it to the stairwell, but Logan paused. The smoke was clearing and he could see some distance away to the next guard shack and stairwell in line. Remy lay there just as Butch had left him, crumpled and ragged against the railing, his head down. Their eyes met briefly and Remy nodded, raising a finger weakly in greeting.

Logan gestured in sign language,**_ I'll come back for you._**

**_Take your time, I'm all right,_** the thief signed back, a wan little smile on his lips. He was pale and shaking, but alive.

Logan nodded and turned back to Skye who had paused. "This way."

The group went down the stairs and into the hallway below. When the familiar scents of home hit Logan, a strange sense of hope and accomplishment washed over him. They had survived under circumstances that had seemed to say otherwise. Yes, the Outkasts was a new element, but he couldn't assume they would be hostile. Maybe they would make it through this okay once the smoke and fires had cleared. One thing was certain, for better or worse, the Game was over.

-------------------

**_Author's notes:_** Howdy, folks. This chapter concludes the Game for the most part but I do have a two part epilogue called Learning to Fly that I will begin posting in a couple of weeks that deals with the direct aftermath of the battle. I just wanted to end this here for those folks who just wanted to get to the end of the battle and bail. Thanks for all of you who stuck with me through two long series of stories. I will really try not to have any more big elongated series going forward. :)

SQ


End file.
